The Old Team's Voyage
by Em Kay Who
Summary: The ship was going to crash and the TARDIS was no longer an option of escape. Rose Tyler's life was at stake and for the Doctor that made things very, very simple. A Voyage of the Damned rewrite. Follows directly after the final chapter of The Old Team.
1. Prologue

**Here it is! So sorry about the wait. My copy of the episode, Voyage of the Damned, stopped working and youtube was being unreliable. And I wanted to make sure of some things from the episode before I officially started posting. My schedule is very busy these next few weeks. I have a sibling about to be married so that's where all my free time is being spent. I will try to update as often as possible though. Thank you to everyone who has stuck by me. You are all fantastic.**

**Enjoy the prologue to The Old Team's Voyage!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or anything related. That goes to the BBC.**

* * *

As Rose Tyler lay in bed she thought about her life thus far. About her childhood. Her troubled youth. And that fateful day in Henricks when everything changed.

If you had told Rose Tyler when she was a little girl, that someday she would be living with a time traveling alien in his time/space ship, she would have laughed and called you barmy. Although, secretly, she would wish with all her heart that it could be true.

If you had said the same to a teenage Rose Tyler, she would have just rolled her eyes and told you to, "piss off."

Of course, now that Rose Tyler was twenty-oneish, (Honestly, do you know how hard it is to keep track of your own age while living in a time machine?!) she couldn't imagine living her life any other way.

It was a magical life. One filled with wonder and beauty and sometimes love. There were the downsides though. For every good thing, there seemed to be something equally bad. Horrible things. Often torturous things. The stuff of nightmares, some might say. But as Rose was once told, "The Doctor is worth the monsters."

And as Rose Tyler, age twenty-oneish, looked over at the sleeping man next to her and ran her hand down his bare chest, she thought, _"Oh yes. The Doctor is definitely worth the monsters."_

* * *

**Please Review! xoxo**


	2. Part One

**A/N: Sorry about the wait! Life is crazy and I am utterly exhausted. Thank you so so much to everyone following this story, those of you who have already favorited, and everyone who has left such amazing reviews! I adore you all. This chapter's a little shorter than I planned, but, I hope you still enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or anything related. That goes to the BBC. *Some lines below are borrowed from the episode The Voyage of the Damned. Credit for those lines belong to the respective writers.***

* * *

_Suddenly the other Doctor's voice echoed in the control room saying, "Oh, Doctor, remember to put your shields up." But just as the he pushed the button to do that, there was the sound of a ship's horn as the prow of a large vessel crashed into the control room, causing Rose and the Doctor to both fall backwards._

_"What? What?!" the Doctor yelled._

_Rose picked up a life belt and said in shock, "Oh my god." The Doctor grabbed the life belt from her and saw that it read __**TITANIC.**_

_"What?!"_

* * *

Quickly the Doctor hopped to his feet and began resetting the console. Rose watched as the broken down walls of the TARDIS reformed and the vessel that had crashed into them disappeared. As everything righted it's self, she felt a rush of lightheadedness. "Well, that felt weird," she exclaimed as she pulled herself up next to the Doctor. "Did we seriously just collide with the Titanic? Wait, hold on, are we the reason the it sinks?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes. "No, Rose we are not the reason the Titanic sinks. Trust me. I was there and that iceberg was very cold."

"So, what just happened then?"

He shrugged nonchalantly. "Dunno. Fancy finding out?"

A huge smile spread across her face. That was the only answer he needed. He quickly landed the TARDIS before grasping Rose's hand and tugging her out the door.

* * *

The Doctor and Rose observed their surroundings cautiously and slowly made their way around the supposed ship. "Doctor," Rose said quietly. "If you've already been to the Titanic, should we even be here? Don't you think two run-ins with your past self might be pushing it?"

"I don't think I've been here before," he informed her. "Look there." He nodded to a pair of large life size statues of gold angel. "Those aren't familiar at all. And trust me, I'd remember."

Rose took a step closer to the Doctor when one of the statues twitched. "Yeah, we don't seem to have the best luck with angels." She shuddered as the memory of a Weeping Angel washed over her. "Better stay clear of this lot."

The Doctor readily agreed and walked away, only to then notice a small red skinned alien. With a frown he pulled Rose over to a nearby window. "Right," he drawled out as he took in the sight before him.

"So, definitely not the original Titanic, I take it," Rose said with a laugh as she looked out and saw that they were orbiting the planet Earth.

A voice came over an intercom, stating, **"Attention all passengers. The Titanic is now in orbit above Sol Three, also known as Earth. Population, Human. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Christmas."**

Rose inhaled sharply. "Christmas," she whispered.

"We never did celebrate," the Doctor mused.

"Just felt sort of wrong without mum. I dunno though... this might be nice..."

"You sure you're ready for something like this? There are an awful lot of people here."

She clutched his hand tightly. "I don't want to be afraid anymore, Doctor. If I stop living my life, then he wins."

The Doctor didn't even have to ask who the "he" she was referring to was. He plastered a smile on his face, determined to give her a happy Christmas, and said, "Come on then. Back to the TARDIS. We need to change!"

* * *

One hour later and the Doctor was standing in the entrance of the wardrobe room, waiting for Rose to finish picking a dress. _Honestly, _he thought to himself. _How long does it take? _He walked over to a mirror and began nervously fiddling with his bow tie. It was a risk, wearing this tux, nothing good ever seemed to happen while he had it on, but, he wanted to go all out for Rose. He knew this was going to be a big step for her and he wanted to make the night special.

His thoughts drifted to his brilliant companion. He found her intriguing from the moment he took her hand and told her to, "run." There was something different and special about her. He tried walking away. Tired not to think about the silly human girl, but she invaded all of his thoughts. His hearts shattered when he invited her along and she said, "no." He couldn't believe it. It wasn't until his ship had almost fully dematerialised that a thought struck him. _Tell her it travels in time! _It went against his rules. He didn't ask people twice. But she was worth it. She would always be worth it.

Warm hands replaced his own, as he blinked and realised that Rose was now standing in front of him fixing his tie. "Stop messin' with it!" she scolded playfully. "Perfect!" she declared when she was finished. "Now you look very cool."

He raised his eyebrows. "Cool?"

"Yeah. Bow ties are cool."

"If you say so."

She leaned and kissed him. "I do."

He responded with an even deeper kiss. "Have I told you how utterly gorgeous you look?" he asked breathlessly.

"Do I?" she responded quietly as she fussed with her skirt. It had taken her forever to decide on what to wear, finally settling a cherry red knee-length dress that flared out at her hips. The neckline was rounded, but, not too revealing and had elbow length sleeves. Despite the modestly of the dress, she felt rather pretty in it. She was just nervous. This was her first time dressing up for anything in a long while. Her hands were shaking so bad, she made the decision not to mess with her hair and to leave it straight. "Are you sure I look posh enough? There were some pretty fancy ladies out there."

The Doctor wrapped his hands around her waist and leaned his forehead against hers. "Rose, you are beautiful. You could be wearing a bin bag and still be the most delightful creature out there."

"Shut up," she told him with a blush.

Sensing an inevitable argument if he kept trying to convince her, the Doctor grabbed her hand and led her towards the control room. "Come on. Christmas awaits."

"So the Titanic? Kind of seems like a poor choice in names, don't ya think?" she asked as they walked through the TARDIS corridors.

"I would have to agree with you there. But the place seemed harmless enough. Just a space cruise touring the Earth."

"Seriously? You don't think there's anything fishy going on?"

"There doesn't have to be trouble every Christmas, Rose," the Doctor said.

She laughed. "For us, the evidence proves otherwise. I don't mind though. A bit of investigating while sipping champagne? Doesn't seem half bad."

* * *

After a quick stop in Rose's room so she could apply some red lippy, they made their way to the control room and to the door. "Are you sure you're ready for this, Rose?" the Doctor asked once more.

"Yes. Look, I'm even wearing flats in case we have to run!"

The Doctor scoffed. "I don't plan on there being any running. Can't we just have a nice normal Christmas?"

Bursting into giggles, she replied, "A nice normal Christmas on a cruise ship in space named after the Titanic? Absolutely. I'm sure we will have a nice normal Christmas."

* * *

**_Coming Soon: Part Two. A nice normal Christmas..._**

**Please Review! xoxo**


	3. Part Two

**A/N: So sorry for the wait! Domestics took over my life this past week/weekend. I just want to say a HUGE thank you to my followers, those of you who have favorited, and everyone who has left such lovely reviews. I tried to respond to all of you reviewers personally, but if for some reason I missed you, know that I truly appreciate your review! Hope you enjoy Part Two :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or anything related. That goes to the BBC. *Some lines below are borrowed from the episode Voyage of the Damned. Credit for those lines belong to their respective writers.***

* * *

Rose and the Doctor made their way around the reception area and was almost immediately given a "Merry Christmas," by one of the stewards. As they continued walking into the dining area they overheard a good looking man smarting off to someone on his mobile device.

"It's not a holiday for me, not while I've still got my vone. Now do as I say and sell!"

"Wanker," Rose whispered.

The Doctor nodded in agreement. "There's at least one in every bunch. Come on," he nodded towards the angel statues, "let's see what this lot is all about. Evening," he greeted when he was in front of the gold angel. "Passengers fifty seven and fifty eight. We have terrible memories so remind us, you would be?"

**"Information. Heavenly Host supplying tourist information,"** the Host responded in a robotic voice.

"Good, so, tell me, because I'm an idiot, where are we from?"

**"Information. The Titanic is en route from the planet Sto in the Cassavalian Belt. The purpose of the cruise is to experience primitive cultures." **

Rose scoffed. "Yeah? And who exactly thought up the name Titanic?"

**"Information. It was chosen as the most famous vessel of the planet Earth," **the Host informed.

The Doctor frowned and asked, "Did they tell you why it was famous?"

**"Information. All designations are chosen by Mister Max Capricorn, president of Max, Max, Max-"** Suddenly the Heavenly Host began twitching as it's tone of voice began to rise. The Steward immediately rushed forward to handle the situation.

"Ooo, bit of a glitch," the Doctor commented.

"It's all right, sir, mu'm, we can handle this," the Steward told them as two more officers came to escort the Host away. "Software problem, that's all. Leave it with us. Merry Christmas. That's another one down," he said when he thought they were out of earshot. "What's going on with these things?"

* * *

"Something's going on with those so called Heavenly Hosts," Rose commented as they walked away from the scene.

The Doctor raised his eyebrows and asked in a lower tone, "Copper's hunch?"

"Maybe," she replied coyly.

"Well, I think you might be right. Still might as well enjoy the evening while we can. Care to dance?"

Rose wanted to say yes. She wanted to say yes so badly. But, as she looked at the packed dance floor and all the people occupying it, her heart began to race. Sensing her dilemma, the Doctor pulled her closer. "Perhaps later, when it's a bit less crowded," he suggested gently. Rose nodded her affirmative, but was cut from actually responding by the sound of glass shattering.

"For Tov's sake, look where you're going! This jacket's a genuine Earth antique," they heard the man Rose referred to as "wanker," yell.

A pretty blonde waitress lowered her head and said, "I'm sorry, sir."

"You'll be sorry when it comes off your wages, sweetheart. Staffed by idiots. No wonder Max Capricorn's going down the drain."

Rose clenched her hands and wanted to respond. She wanted to give that man a good smack for the way he just spoke to the other woman. The old Rose would have. But, suddenly, the thought of confronting that man terrified her. She silently cursed the Master for what he did to her. She also wondered if she would ever be back to her old self again. Shaking those thoughts away, Rose grabbed the Doctor's hand and rushed forward to help the waitress pick of the broken glass of the floor.

"Careful. There we go," the Doctor said kindly as he picked up a rather sharp shard.

The woman looked away embarrassedly. "Thank you, sir, mu'm. I can manage."

"Course you can," Rose agreed. "But, we still want to help."

The Doctor smiled at Rose proudly before looking back to the waitress. "I'm the Doctor, by the way. And this is Rose."

"Astrid." The blonde woman nodded. "Astrid Peth."

"Nice to meet you, Astrid Peth. Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas, sir, mu'm."

"Just Doctor and Rose, not sir or mu'm."

Rose grinned and told her, "We're not big on formalities."

Astrid smiled in reply as she stood up. "Are you two enjoying the cruise?"

The Doctor helped Rose stand as he replied, "Uh, yeah, I suppose. I don't know. We haven't really done much yet. Night's still young though. What about you? Long way from home, Planet Sto."

"Doesn't feel that different," Astrid answered with a shrug. "I spent three years working at the spaceport diner, travelled all the way here and I'm still waiting on tables."

Rose followed the waitress as she made her rounds around the room. "What, you don't get any shore leave?"

"We're not allowed. They can't afford the insurance. I just wanted to try it, just once. I used to watch the ships heading out to the stars and I always dreamt of. It sounds daft."

"Not to us."

"You dreamt of another sky," the Doctor said as they stopped at one of the windows overlooking the Earth. He watched as Astrid stared longingly at the planet below. "New sun, new air, new life. A whole universe teeming with life. Why stand still when there're all that life out there?"

Astrid shook her head. What had come over her? She turned her attention back to the couple next to her. "So, you travel a lot?"

"All the time. Just for fun. Well, that's the plan. Never quite works."

Rose giggled. "We love it!"

"Must be rich, though," Astrid mused.

The Doctor crossed his arms and admitted, "Haven't got a penny. Either of us!" He leaned closer to whisper, "Stowaways."

The waitress's mouth literally opened in shock. "Kidding."

"Seriously."

"No." She couldn't believe. They were so well dressed!

He smirked and threw his arm around Rose's shoulder. "Oh, yeah."

"How did you get on board?" she asked in disbelief.

"Accident. We've got this, sort of, ship thing. I was just rebuilding her. Left the defenses down. Bumped into the Titanic. Here we are. Bit of a party and we hadn't celebrated Christmas in a while so we thought, why not?"

"I should report you."

"Do it," Rose challenged playfully.

Astrid debated for all of five seconds before conspiring, "I'll get you a couple of drinks on the house."

"She's sweet. I feel bad for her." Rose sighed as their new friend went to go fetch them some drinks.

The Doctor nodded. "So do I."

* * *

As they waited for Astrid to return, they heard a table of uptight looking guest having a rather boisterous laugh at the expense of two other slightly larger party goers, who appeared to be wearing purple cowboy outfits. Seeing how clearly uncomfortable the couple was, Rose led the Doctor over to their table and sat down.

"Just ignore them," they heard the man tell the woman on his right.

"You should listen to him," Rose told her kindly, seeing the tears that were threatening to spill over the woman's eyes.

"Something's tickled them," the Doctor stated.

"They told us it was fancy dress," she informed them with a nod to her's and the man's loud outfits. "Very funny, I'm sure."

"Who cares what they think? They're all tossers. I love what you're wearing. Purple's a lovely color for your skin tone," Rose complemented.

The larger man sighed as he explained, "They're just picking on us because we haven't paid. We won our tickets in a competition."

"I had to name the five husbands of Joofie Crystalle in By the Light of the Asteroid," the woman said proudly. "Did you ever watch By the Light of the Asteroid?"

Rose's eyes lit up. "All the time!"

The Doctor furrowed his brow. "Is that the one with the twins?"

"That's it. Oh, it's marvellous," the woman told him.

"But, we're not good enough for that lot," the man said with bitterness. "They think we should be in steerage."

"Well, can't have that, can we?" With his back to the table filled with mockers, the Doctor aimed his sonic screwdriver at the champagne resting on their table. The cork suddenly popped off, causing the liquid inside the bottle to spray everyone at the table.

The woman's eyes widened. "Did you do that?"

"Maybe."

"We like you."

"We do," the man agreed. "I'm Morvin Van Hoff. This is my good woman, Foon."

The Doctor leaned forward to shake their hands. "Foon. Hello! This good woman to my left is Rose and I'm the Doctor."

"Oh, I'm going to need a doctor, time I've finished with that buffet. Have a buffalo wing." Foon nodded to the large tray of food on their table. "They must be enormous, these buffalo. So many wings."

Rose suppressed a giggle at the image Foon's words had created.

Not a moment later, they heard a voice announce, "Attention please. Shore leave tickets Red Six Seven now activated. Red Six Seven."

Foon jumped. "Red Six Seven. That's us. Are you Red Six Seven?" she asked the Doctor and Rose.

"Might as well be," the Doctor said happily.

Morvin stood. "Come on, then. We're going to Earth."

"Never been there before. You always take me to such new and interesting places," Rose said quietly to the Doctor as she threw him a wink.

"Cheeky woman," he muttered as he followed her away.

* * *

They soon came upon an older looking gentleman in a tweed suit, holding a sign and calling out, "Red Six Seven. Red Six Seven. This way, fast as you can."

Astrid came forward, holding a tray with two beverages on top. "I got you those drinks."

The Doctor took the tray and sat it down. "And we've got you a treat. Come on."

"Red Six Seven departing shortly," the older man announced.

Quickly whipping out the psychic paper, the Doctor held it up and said, "We're Red Six Seven with our plus one."

With barely a glance to the paper, the man told him, "Quickly, sir, please, and take three teleport bracelets if you would."

"I'll get the sack," Astrid said nervously.

"We'll watch out for ya," Rose told her.

The Doctor held the bracelet out in temptation. "Brand new sky..." Astrid grabbed the bracelet and shoved it on her wrist before stepping slightly behind the Doctor and Rose so not to be noticed.

The older gentleman cleared his throat. "To repeat, I am Mister Copper, the ship's historian, and I shall be taking you to old London town in the country of UK, ruled over by good King Wenceslas." Rose quirked her head. "Now, human beings worship the great god Santa, a creature with fearsome claws, and his wife Mary. And every Christmas Eve, the people of UK go to war with the country of Turkey. They then eat the Turkey people for Christmas dinner like savages."

Rose snorted loudly as the Doctor stepped forward. "Excuse me. Sorry, sorry, but, uh, where did you get all this from?"

"Well, I have a first class degree in Earthonomics. Now, stand by."

At that moment, the little red alien they had noticed when they first arrived, raced forward shouting, "And me! And me! Red Six Seven."

"Well, take a bracelet, please, sir."

Rose tugged the Time Lord's jacket. "Doctor, he's red and we're going to Earth."

Nodding, the Doctor stepped forward once more. "Hold on, hold on. What was your name?"

"Bannakaffalatta," the small alien responded.

Pausing for just a moment, the Doctor then stated, "Okay, Bannakaffalatta. But, it's Christmas Eve down there. Late night shopping, tons of people. He's like a talking conker. No offence, but you'll cause a riot because the streets are going to be packed with shoppers and parties and-" Suddenly the group was teleported down to Earth. "Oh."

* * *

The Doctor and Rose stood in shock as, what should have been a packed shopping are of London, was completely empty. Rose grabbed the Doctor's hand and said, "I don't understand."

"Now, spending money. I have a credit card in Earth currency if you want to by trinkets, or stockings, or the local delicacy, which is known as beef. But, don't stray too far, it could be dangerous. Any day now they start boxing," Mr. Copper told the group.

Bannakaffalatta nodded. "Very good."

"It should be full. It should be busy. Something's wrong," the Doctor spoke his thoughts aloud.

"But, it's beautiful," Astrid said, her voice dripping in awe and wonder.

Rose turned her head quickly. "Seriously? I mean, this is just London. Don't get me wrong, there's lots of places on Earth that are beautiful. The pyramids for instance, or even New Zealand. This is just plain old London, England"

"But, it's a different planet. I'm standing on a different planet." She jumped up and down. "There's concrete and shops. Alien shops. Real alien shops! Look, no stars in the sky. And it smells. It stinks! Oh, this is amazing. Thank you!" Astrid hugged her new friends.

"Yeah? Come on then, let's have a look." The Doctor began walking towards an open news-stand. Inside the news-stand were papers filled with headlines about a deserted London. Also inside was an elderly man with a Union Flag hanging behind him. "Hello, there. Sorry, obvious question, but, where's everybody gone?"

"Oh ho, scared!" the man answered.

"What're they scared of?" Rose spoke up.

"Where've you been living, missy? London at Christmas? Not safe, is it?"

"Why?" the Doctor asked innocently.

The man turned serious. "Well, it's them, up above. Look, Christmas before last we had that big bloody spaceship, everyone standing on a roof. And then last year, that Christmas Star electrocuting all over the place, draining the Thames."

Astrid looked shocked. "This place is amazing!"

"And this year," the man continued, "Lord knows what. So, everybody's scarpered. Gone to the country. All except me and Her Majesty." He paused to listen to a news report, on the telly, that stated that the Queen would in fact be staying at Buckingham Palace. The man stood and held his hand up in salute. "God bless her. We stand vigil."

"Good for you!" Rose said with a tongue in teeth grin.

"Indeed," the Doctor agreed. "Between you and me, I think her Majesty's got it right. Far as I know, this year, nothing to worry about-" Suddenly, Astrid, Rose, himself, and the rest of their group vanished into thin air and reappeared on the Titanic.

* * *

"I was in mid-sentence!" the Doctor complained.

Mister Copper swallowed anxiously. "Yes, I'm sorry about that. A bit of a problem. If I could have your bracelets."

The Steward stepped forward. "Apologies, ladies and gentlemen, and Bannakaffalatta. We seem to have suffered a slight power fluctuation. If you'd like to return to the festivities. And on behalf of Max Capricorn Cruiseliners, free drinks will be provided."

"Thank you," Foon responded happily.

"That was the best. The best!" Astrid exclaimed.

The Doctor ignored her and watched the Steward with skepticism. "What sort of power fluctuation?"

"Maybe it's related to the Host messing up," Rose replied quietly.

"Are you deducting?"

"I think it's time we follow up now, Sarge."

The Doctor brushed a light kiss on her lips. "I agree, Lewis."

* * *

_**Coming Soon: Part Three...**_

**Please Review! xoxo**


	4. Part Three

**A/N: Big thanks to my followers, those who have favorited, and those who have left such lovely reveiws! This chapter is shorter than I originally planned on it being, but, I hope you still enjoy it :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or anything related. That goes to the BBC. *Some lines below are borrowed from the episode Voyage of the Damned. Credit for those lines belong to their respective writers.***

* * *

"Where are you going?" the Doctor asked after Rose immediately pulled away from him.

"The loo," she answered simply.

"Really? Right now? I thought we were going to investigate."

Rose smirked. "Exactly what I plan on doing. Listen, Doctor, if there's something fishy going on around this place, there must be rumours flying about. And what type of people know the best gossip? The women. And where would one find a gathering of women spreading rumours and filling each other in on the best gossip? The loo."

Pausing for a moment, the Doctor gave a large grin. "Rose Tyler, you are brilliant. You go see what you can find out from the ladies and I'll poke around here for a bit."

"Sounds like a plan!"

* * *

The Doctor gave a heavy sigh as he watched Rose retreat to the ladies room. He knew she was struggling and trying to keep up a brave face for him. That was his Rose. Always putting his feelings above her own. They should leave. He should run after her and grab her hand and whisk her back to the TARDIS where she would be safe and sound. He couldn't deny that something felt off on the Titanic though. Maybe it was just the name, but, something tickled the Doctor's senses. A feeling of foreboding loomed over him and this entire ship. He could try to convince Rose to go back to the TARDIS where she would feel more comfortable while he sorted this lot out. But, he knew she would never go for that. She would stick by his side through thick and thin apparently. The Doctor didn't deserve her. He knew that far too well. But, he was also far too selfish to give her up. He needed her. With every fiber of his being, he needed her.

The Doctor ran his hand over his face as he began to walk about the ship. His ears perked up when he caught the last bit of an advertisement for the cruiseliner playing on a nearby monitor.

**"And I should know because my name is Max. The fastest, the furthest, the best. My name is Max." **

Figuring that would be the best place to start, the Doctor whipped on the Sonic Screwdriver and went to work on unfastening the frame surrounding the monitor.

* * *

Rose leaned heavily on the stall door, trying to catch her breath. She hadn't lied to the Doctor exactly. She really did think that she might be able to find out some useful information from some of the ladies in the loo, but, that wasn't her only reason for retreating. The truth was, she was feeling completely overwhelmed. There were just so many people on board and between maneuvering through the crowds, being teleported to an abandoned London, and then suddenly teleported right back, it was all just too much. Her heart was racing and how the Doctor didn't feel how slick her hands had become, she'll never know. Perhaps he had noticed and was just too polite to say something. That was probably it. Rude and not ginger, he may be, but, he definitely had his gentlemanly moments.

Taking deep calming breaths, Rose finally stepped out of her stall and was met with the sight of three, tall and gorgeous woman. Immediately, Rose was put off by them. Automatically assuming they were stuck up snobs, like the awful people who had made fun of Morvin and Foon earlier in the evening.

Suddenly the tallest, and oldest of the three rushed forward. "Oh, you poor dear! You're pale as a ghost. You didn't eat any of those snap cakes did you? They made my poor Avid sick as could be last evening."

"I'm fine really," Rose insisted as the woman led her over to a nearby settee. "I'm just a bit tired is all."

"I hardly blame you, honey. How anyone could get a peaceful night sleep on this old ship, I'll never know."

Rose smiled at the woman. Clearly she had misjudged her, and most likely her friends as well. _She must be a mother, _Rose thought to herself as the woman gently patted her shoulder and ordered one of the other women to fetch a glass of cool water. She looked to be in her forties, with raven coloured hair that was swept up in an elegant up-do. "Thank you," Rose said quietly when the glass of water was pressed into her hands.

"Sure thing, sweetheart," the woman responded. Rose's heart ached at the sentiment. Only two people called her that. One was Captain Jack and the other was her mother. Rose resisted the urge to cry as she thought of her mum and the alternate Pete living out their lives in the other universe. She hoped they were happy. She also wondered if her mum had ever had a little boy or a little girl. Rose secretly hoped for a boy. Her mind then went to Mickey. She hoped he was happy with his new life as well.

"You sure you're alright?" the woman who had fetched the water, asked. "You looked as if you were a million zels away."

"I'm just missing my family is all."

"First time away from home?" the third, and youngest looking woman asked.

"Not at all. I just haven't seen them in a very long time."

The older woman wrapped her arm around her. "Well, I'm sure they miss you as well. I'm Josie by the way." She pointed to the dark blonde next to her. "That's my sister, Lorsha. And the skinny little thing next to her is my daughter Aleena."

Rose smiled at all three ladies, seeing now the clear family resemblance. Aleena had the exact same raven coloured hair as her mother. "I'm Rose," she greeted back.

"That's a lovely name," Lorsha complemented.

"Ta."

"Are you enjoying the cruise, Rose?" Aleena asked timidly.

"I suppose so." Remembering her purpose for coming to the loo, Rose asked, "What about you? Have any of you noticed anything... odd...?"

"Nothing that I can recall," Josie answered honestly. "Why do you ask?"

"It's just my friend and I, we noticed the Hosts seemed to be acting rather off. Then on top of that, our trip to Earth got cut short due to a power fluctuation."

"How unfortunate. Our group is going tomorrow. I do hope they have everything fixed by then!" Lorsha responded.

Suddenly Josie stood up. "Oh dear! I just remembered that Kraymen is out there waiting for us. Come along dears, you know how my husband gets if we delay supper too long," she said with a laugh. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Rose. I hope we see you around tomorrow!"

Aleena went to follow her mother and aunt out, but stopped short. "I'll be along in a moment, mother. I just need to wash my hands." She turned back to Rose. "You're right about the Hosts. Something's wrong with them."

"What do you mean?" Rose asked carefully.

"This is the fourth time my family has sailed with Capricorn Cruisliners. And there is just something... different... about the Hosts this time around."

"Can you think of anything specific?"

"Not really. There's just something off about the whole place. Something I've never noticed before and it frightens me. I tried asking my family if they noticed anything as well, but they just laughed and told me I was being daft."

Rose smiled at the girl. She was so young, but, there was clearly something special. Honestly, if things were a bit different she would maybe ask her to join Team TARDIS for a bit. She clearly had an eye for things. "How old are you Aleena?"

"Just turned seventeen. I'm not just some dumb teenager," she replied defensively.

"Never said you were. I believe you. Completely. Listen, my friend and I are going to figure out what's going on around here alright. I promise. Go enjoy the rest of the evening with your family."

On cue there was a knock on the door, followed by a young man's voice saying, "Aleena! Will you hurry up already. Dad's getting impatient and Uncle Frads has already stated that he's eating your food if you don't hurry up."

"That's my brother Avid," she said quietly before shouting, "Coming!"

"Go on then," Rose encouraged.

"You sure you and your friend will work everything out?"

"Promise."

* * *

Rose decided that it was probably time to go track down the Doctor. Hopefully he had found more information than she had. Of course, it was almost no surprise to her, at all, when she exited the loo and was met with the sight of the Doctor being escorted away and being followed by Astrid, Bannakaffalatta, Mister Copper, and the Van Hoffs. She quickly ran after the group and hollered, "Doctor! What the hell is going on?"

The Doctor didn't answer her and instead shouted to the Steward, "If you don't believe me, check the shields yourself."

Astrid raced forward. "Sir, I can vouch for him!"

"Look, Steward, he's just had a bit too much to drink," Morvin stated.

"That's not true," Rose denied. "We haven't had a single drink."

"Sir, something seems to have gone wrong. All the teleports have gone down," Mister Copper injected.

"Not now!" The Steward yelled.

"Will someone please tell me what is happening!?" Rose cried out.

The Doctor turned even more serious when the made it into one of the corridors. "The shields are down. We are going to get hit."

"Hit by what?" she asked, trying to stay as calm as possible.

"There's a rock storm headed directly for this ship."

Rose took a shaky breath. "That sounds bad. That's bad, yeah?"

"Very."

A few seconds later, the man who had bumped into Astrid earlier, raced into the corridor as well. "Oi! Steward! I'm telling you, the shields are down!"

The Doctor pleaded, "Listen to him. Listen to him!"

Suddenly Rose felt dizzy and if she listened carefully, someone or something was crying out. She leaned forward and grasped the Doctor's arm. He gasped when he saw her eyes glowing gold. "Something is coming," she whispered before the first explosion hit.

* * *

_**Coming Soon: Part Four... **_

**Please Review! xoxo**


	5. Part Four

**A/N: Hello all! I just have to say, bit thanks to my followers, those who have favorited, and everyone who has left such kind and lovely reviews. I adore you all. I hope you enjoy Part Four :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or anything related. That goes to the BBC. *Some lines below are borrowed from the episode Voyage of the Damned. Credit for thos lines belong to their respective writers.***

* * *

Multiple explosions rocked the Titanic, one right after the other. Thankfully, Rose had been standing directly in front of the Doctor, who was able to keep a tight grip on her. At some point Astrid fell towards the pair, and the Doctor tried his best to hold on to her, as well, as the other occupants of the corridor were tossed about like rag dolls. After a few moments, the explosions stopped.

Morvin instantly moved to comfort his wife. "It's all right, sweetheart."

The Doctor stood quickly, dragging Rose with him, and held up his hand, waiting to see if there would be any aftershocks. "Sshh. It's stopping." He then held his companion before him and inspected her for any injuries. "Rose? Look at me. Are you all right?" he asked nervously when he noticed that her eyes were unfocused. He was a bit relieved to see her they were back to their normal brown though.

Blinking several times, she finally turned her gaze to his. "I feel... I feel dizzy."

"Your equilibrium is probably a bit off from all the rocking about. That and perhaps the fact that you were a bit Bad Wolf there for a moment."

"I was?" she asked, genuinely confused.

"You don't remember?" She shook her head in denial. He sighed. "Well, let's deal with that later, shall we?" He turned to the other blonde near him. "How about you Astrid? You alright?"

"I think so," she answered quietly.

"Bad name for a ship. Either that or this suit is really unlucky."

Rose chuckled slightly. "Probably a bit of both." Her laughter cut short when she noticed one of the Steward's men lying prone on the ground. The Doctor saw what had caught her attention and checked for a pulse, after finding none, he gave a small shake of his head to the Chief Steward.

Clearing his throat, the man said, "Uh, everyone. Ladies and gentlemen, Bannakaffalatta. I must apologise on behalf of Max Capricorn Cruiseliners. We seem to have had a small collision."

Morvin's eyes grew wide with shock. "Small?!"

"Do you know how much I paid for my ticket?" the man, who had crashed into Astrid earlier in the evening, asked.

"If I could have silence, ladies, gentlemen. Please. Quiet!" the Steward finally yelled. "Thank you. I'm sure Max Capricorn Cruiseliners will be able to reimburse you for any inconvenience, but first I would point out that we're very much alive."

Astrid, having moving forward, noticed a cut on Mister Copper's head and called the Doctor forward. "Are you alright?" the Time Lord asked him.

The Steward continued with his spiel, "She is, after all, a fine, sturdy ship. If you could all stay here while I ascertain the exact nature of the situation."

At the moment, the Doctor realised what exactly the Steward was about to do. "Don't open it!" It was too late. The Steward opened the nearest hatch and was instantly sucked into space. Everyone clung for dear life as the vacuum like suction tried to pull them all out. "Rose, hold on!" the Doctor screamed. She was closet to the opened hatch and was barely hanging on to a nearby pipe. This was almost too much for the Doctor. It was too much like the Battle of Canary Wharf. The Doctor used all his strength to propel himself over to the control panel, as he pulled out his sonic screwdriver, and quickly turned the Oxygen Shield back on. Everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief as the slumped back to the floor. The Doctor could have cheered when he fell to his knees and scooped Rose into his arms. He didn't lose her before, and he wasn't about to lose her now.

"I'm alright, Doctor," she whispered in his ear.

"I know."

"We've got to get back to the TARDIS."

"Right you are. Come on." He stood first and the helped Rose to her feet. As soon as she was standing, though, her legs gave out and he had to pull her back into his embrace. "What's wrong?"

"I still feel dizzy..."

"And now I really want you back in the TARDIS." He turned his attention back to the group surrounding him. "Everyone all right? Astrid?"

"Yeah," she responded immediately.

"Foon? Morvin? Mister Copper? Bannakaffalatta?"

The first three nodded as Bannakaffalatta said, "Yes."

"You," the Doctor said to the other man, "what was your name?"

"Rickston Slade," the man answered pompously.

The Doctor heard Rose mumble, "Of course it is."

He ignored her comment and asked, "You all right?"

Rickston gave a brief nod before adding, "No thanks to that idiot."

Astrid looked appalled. She may not have been overly found of the Steward, but, he had been a nice enough fellow. Not the worst boss she could have had. "The Steward just died."

"Then he's a dead idiot."

The Doctor held up his hands. "All right, calm down. Just stay still, all of you. Hold on." He then moved himself and Rose closer to the opened hatch and were followed by Astrid.

"What happened?" she asked. "How come the shields were down?"

"I don't think it was an accident." He noticed Rose was trembling on his arms. "Rose? Rose, what is it?" He followed her gaze and saw what she was looking at. Dozens of bodies floating amongst the debris from the ship. "Ssshh. It's alright."

"No," she whimpered. "I... I know her." Rose pointed at the body of another woman. "Josie. I-I met her in the loo. She was kind to me."

The Doctor pulled her closer and placed a kiss in her hair. "I'm sorry."

"She had a family, Doctor! What if- What if they're still alive? I promised her daughter, Aleena, that we would figure out what was happening on this ship. I promised her, Doctor!"

"And we will, Rose. We will figure this out. And if any of Josie's family is alive, then I promise you, Rose, we will save them."

Rose took a deep breath and managed a small nod, as she continued to lean on the Doctor for support.

Astrid finally broke the silence. "How many dead?"

"We're alive. Just focus on that. I will get you out of here, Astrid, I promise. Look at me." He used his free hand to grab her shoulder. "I promise. Good. Now, if we can get to Reception, I've got a spaceship tucked away. We can all get on board and. Oh."

"What is it? What's wrong?"

"That's my ship over there."

"The TARDIS!" Rose cried in shock.

Astrid frowned. "Where?"

"There. That box. That little blue box." He pointed to the TARDIS as he floated closer to the planet below.

"That's a spaceship?"

"Oi, don't knock it."

"It's a bit small."

"A bit distant," the Doctor conceded. "Trouble is, once it's set adrift, it's programmed to lock onto the nearest centre of gravity, and that would be the Earth." Seeing the nearby control panel, the Doctor made his way over to it and tried to see if he could contact the Captain or perhaps someone else in charge of the vessel. "Deck twenty two to the bridge. Deck twenty two to the bridge. Is there anyone there?" he asked into the mic.

A young man's voice came over the speaker. **"This is the bridge."**

"Oh hello, sailor. Good to hear you. What's the situation up there?"

**"We've got air. The oxygen field is holding, but the Captain, he's dead. He did it. I watched while he took down the shields. There was nothing I could do. I tried. I did try." **

The young man sounded frantic and in shock and that seemed to break Rose out of her shell and bring her back into the moment. Pulling the mic away from the Doctor she said, "Hey now. That's alright, sweetheart. We believe you. Just stay calm and tell me your name."

**"Midshipman Frame,"** he responded with a deep breath.

"Lovely to meet you. My name's Rose. I'm gonna hand you back over to my friend, alright? His name's the Doctor and he's gonna help you."

The Doctor took a moment to smile with pride at his beloved companion before turning his attention back to Midshipman Frame. "Nice to meet you, sir. What's the state of the engines?"

**"They're..uh. Hold on." **They heard heavy breathing followed by a small grunt of pain.** "Oh."**

"Have you been injured?"

**"I'm all right. Oh, my Vot. They're cycling down." **

"That's a nuclear storm drive, yes?"

**"Yeah."**

Rose clutched the Doctor's arm. "Not good I take it?"

He shook his head. "The moment they're gone we lose orbit."

**"The planet," **Frame said with a gasp.

"Oh, yes. If we hit the planet, the nuclear storm explodes and wipes out life on Earth. Midshipman, I need you to fire up the engine containment field and feed it back into the core."

**"This is never going to work."**

"Trust me, it'll keep the engines going until I can get to the bridge." The Doctor moved away from the control panel and looked back at the group of survivors.

"We're going to die!" Foon cried out.

"Are you saying someone's done this on purpose?" Mister Copper asked at the same time.

"We are. We're going to die."

"We're just a cruise ship," Astrid insisted.

"Oi!" Rose shouted to the very loud group. "Fingers on lips." She held up her own in demonstration and glared at everyone, Rickston included, until they complied.

"Right then. Brilliant!" the Doctor exclaimed. "First things first. One. We are going to climb through this ship. B. No. Two. We're going to reach the bridge. Three. Or C. We're going to save the Titanic. And, coming in a very low four, or D, or that little iv in brackets they use in footnotes, why. Right then, follow me."

Rickston lowered his finger from his mouth and said, "Hang on a minute. Who put you in charge and who the hell are you anyway?"

The Doctor turned to face the group head on. Rose took a small step back when she saw a bit of the Oncoming Storm make an appearance in his eyes. "I'm the Doctor. I'm a Time Lord. I'm from the planet Gallifrey in the constellation of Kasterborous. I'm nine hundred and three years old and I'm the man who's going to save your lives and all six billion people on the planet below. You got a problem with that?"

"No," he replied quietly as everyone else stayed stone silent.

"In that case," the Doctor grabbed Rose's hand, "allons-y!"

* * *

The group stayed mostly silent until they reached a bulkhead door that was slightly ajar. "Careful," the Doctor said as he pushed it open. "Follow me."

"Rather ironic," Mister Copper spoke up as they began to climb some stairs, "but, this is very much in the spirit of Christmas. It's a festival of violence. They say that human beings only survive depending on whether they've been good or bad. It's barbaric."

"Actually, that's not true. Christmas is a time of, of peace and thanksgiving and-"

"What are you on about?" Rose cut him off. "Our Christmases are always like this. Mind you, they usually turn alright in the end."

Just then the Doctor discovered something amongst the fallen debris. "We've got a Host. Strength of ten. If we can mend it, we can use it to fix the rubble."

Morvin stepped forward. "We can do robotics." He gestured to himself and his wife. "Both of us."

Foon nodded in agreement. "We work on the milk market back on Sto. It's all robot staff."

"See if you can get it working," the Doctor told them before moving forward up the stairs. "Let's have a look."

"It's blocked," Astrid announced when they could they're path had been cut off by the rubble.

"So what do we do?" the Doctor asked. Rose raised her eyebrows. He was testing her, seeing if Astrid would be a worthy companion, and, suddenly, Rose wasn't sure how she felt about that.

"We shift it," the waitress responded correctly.

"That's the attitude!" the Doctor cheered. "Rickston, Mister Copper, and you, Bannakaffalatta. Look, can I just call you Banna? It's going to save a lot of time."

The little red man frowned. "No. Bannakaffalatta."

"All right then, Bannakaffalatta. There's a gap in the middle. See if you can get through."

"Easy. Good."

At that moment the ship began to shake, causing more debris to fall.

"This whole thing could come crashing down any minute," Rickston Slade complained.

The Doctor turned to him. "Oh, Rickston, I forgot. Did you get that message?"

"No. What message?"

"Shut up!" he yelled, causing Rose to give a small giggle.

A voiced drifted down to them, "Bannakaffalatta made it."

Astrid peaked through the hole. "I'm small enough, I can get through."

"Careful," the Doctor warned.

"I'm fine."

"What about you, Rose?"

She shook her head in disappointment. "Normally I would say yes, Doctor. But, I feel so weak. I don't think I'll be able to crawl through at all."

He realised then just how heavily she was leaning on him. He hadn't seen her like this in a while and it had him nervous. "Just rest for now. We'll figure it out when the time comes."

Rickston shot them a disgusted look. "That's all fine and dandy, but, thing is, how are Mister and Mrs Fatso going to get through that gap?"

The Doctor glared at the man. "We make the gap bigger. So start."

* * *

They all worked in silence for a few minutes until they heard laughter from the Van Hoffs. Rickston smirked. "What happened? Did they find a doughnut?"

Rose rolled her eyes. "Bloody wanker," she mumbled just loud enough for the Doctor to hear.

"I can clear it from this side," Astrid called to them. "Just tell me if it starts moving."

A few moments later and nothing had happened. "What's going on up there?" the Doctor shouted.

Astrid popped into his line of vision from the top of the hole. "I think Bannakaffalatta and I just got engaged."

The Doctor raised his eyebrows and whispered to Rose, "Could you imagine their children?"

She gave a weak smack to his arm as she laughed. "Shut up."

"Almost done!" Morvin informed them.

"Good, good, good. Mister Frame, how's things?" the Doctor asked into the nearest control panel.

**"Doctor, I've got life signs all over the ship, but, they're going out one by one,"** Midshipman Frame responded.

Rose whimpered as the Doctor asked, "What is it? Are they losing air?"

**"No. One of them said it's the Host. It's something to do with the Host." **

At that moment they heard Morvin shout, "It's working!"

The Host immediately responded with one word, **_"Kill." _**

"Turn it off!" the Doctor ordered.

"I can't, Doctor!" Foon screamed.

The Host continued chanting, **_"Kill. Kill. Kill."_**

The Doctor shoved Rose towards the gap. "You have to climb now!"

Rose nodded her head and summoned as much strength as she could muster. She climbed as far as fast as she could, but, was still taking a long time.

"Here you are now, I'm here. I've got you," Astrid called out to her, reaching her hand out to try and help. As soon as she could reach her, Astrid managed to help pull her up the rest of the way.

As soon as Rose was through, Rickston made his way up.

Rose snapped when she saw his face appear. "Foon was down there, you bloody fool! Whatever happened to ladies first!?"

"Don't start that with me, missy," he growled back to her.

Her heart began to race when she saw the rage in his eyes. Rose took an involuntary step back and ran into Astrid. "Don't listen to him. You're white as a ghost. Sit down and I'll help the others."

* * *

Rose cringed as she heard the Host's continuous death chant. The Doctor was still on the other side and now Foon was stuck!

"It's going to collapse," Mister Copper cried out when the debris began to collapse. Thankfully Foon made it through, but, they were still waiting for Morvin and the Doctor. "Rickston, vot damn it, help me!"

"No way," he replied.

Feeling a burst of energy from an unknown source, Rose leaped forward and helped Mister Copper hold up the falling rubble.

"Rose!" Astrid called. "Your eyes are glowing." Rose ignored her and focused and helping Morvin, who was now stuck as well, through the gap. When he finally made it, Astrid shouted, "Doctor, come on, get through."

They heard him stop and command the Host, "Information override! You will tell me the point of origin of your command structure!"

The glow in Rose's eyes began to fade and Mister Copper started to shake with exertion. "I can't hold it!"

**_"Information,"_** they heard the Host respond. **_"Deck thirty one."_**

"Thank you," the Doctor said before crawling quickly through the debris. He then repeated the sentiments to those who helped in through the gap. His eyes immediately fell on Rose. He watched as her eyes quickly faded to brown. He raced forward and grabbed her arms. "Rose?"

She looked up and gave him a weak smile. "Hello," she greeted before promptly passing out in his arms.

* * *

_**Coming Soon: Part Five...**_

**Please Review! xoxo**


	6. Part Five

**A/N: Hello! Whew. I know what you're thinking, another chapter? So soon? Well, my thoughts exactly! But you are all so great, I wanted to get this up as quick as possible. Many thanks to my followers, those who have favorited, and to everyone who has taken the time to leave such great reviews! I really hope you all like this next chapter. It's nice and long, although, I'll admit it's a rough one emotionally.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or anything related. That goes to the BBC. *Some lines below are borrowed from the episode Voyage of the Damned. Credit for those lines belong to their respective writers.***

* * *

"Rose?!" The Doctor slid to his knees and cradled her in his arms. He looked to Astrid for help. "What happened?"

"I-I don't know," the young woman stammered. "She, uh, snapped at Rickston and he snapped right back and after that she turned real pale. Honest, I never seen someone look so sickly! I told her to sit down, but then out of nowhere, her eyes started to glow and suddenly she was helping Mister Cooper hold up the falling rubble and helping Morvin through the gap."

The Doctor's eyes narrowed at the smarmy man leaning nonchalantly on the neighboring wall. "What did you say to her?" he asked calmly. Too calmly.

Rickston shrugged. "Nothing of any importance. She was the one who called me a bloody fool! I didn't do this to her though."

"You are a bloody fool! And you better be praying that she's alright. Because if she's not, I'm seeing no reason not to hold you personally responsible and trust me, that is the last thing you want."

Mister Copper stepped forward. "Doctor, I really hate to interrupt, but, I really think we should continue moving forward. I have no doubt that there are more Hosts on the way."

The Doctor gave a reluctant nod and placed his fingers on Rose's temples. He hated that this was the only way, but, he really saw no other options. As light as she might be, there was no way the Doctor could carry Rose through the entire ship and keep an eye on the rest of their party. Not to mention the fact that they could be attacked by Hosts at any minute. He gave a silent plea for forgiveness and quickly slipped into the first layer of her mind, taking great pains not to delve any further and see something he shouldn't.

_"Rose,"_ he whispered. _"Come out now, love. I need you to wake up."_

Feeling her begin to awaken, he gently slipped out of her mind just in time to see her eyes flutter open.

"Doctor?" her voice rasped out.

"Hey there, Sleeping Beauty."

"What... What happened?"

He furrowed his brow. "You don't remember?"

She shook her head and slowly shifted her weight so she was sitting more upright. "The last thing I remember is Rickston," she stopped and cleared her throat, "I mean Astrid telling me to sit for a moment. What happened after that?"

The Doctor frowned when he heard her skip over the mention of Rickston, but, decided to let it slide. For now. "Don't worry about that. We've got to get to that Bridge pronto. The Hosts are out to kill us all." He stood and first and then helped her up as well. "Are you okay to walk?"

"I think so," she confirmed. "Don't worry about me. I can keep up."

He hugged her tightly. "I'll always worry about you, Rose." He broke away and grabbed her hand. "Let's go!"

* * *

After a few minutes of brisk walking they came upon an open corridor. Off to the side was a trolley filled with sandwiches and other various treats.

"Morvin, look. Food!" Foon exclaimed.

Rickston rolled his eyes. "Oh great. Someone's happy."

"Don't have any then," Morvin told him sternly.

The Doctor settled Rose off to the side. "Stay here. I'm going over to that panel to check on the Bridge."

Rose nodded as she rested her head on the wall. "Kay."

* * *

"Mister Frame, are you still there?" the Doctor asked a few moments later when he made it to the control panel.

**"Yes, sir, but I've got Host outside. I've sealed the door,"** the frightened young man responded.

"They've been programmed to kill. Why would anyone do that?"

**"That's not the only problem, Doctor. I had to use a maximum deadlock on the door, which means no one can get in. I'm sealed off. Even if you can fix the Titanic you can't get to the bridge."**

The Doctor sighed. Great. Just one more thing to add to his plate. "Yeah, right, fine. One problem at a time." He then remembered something the Host had said. "What's on deck thirty one?"

**"Uh, that's down below,"** Midshipman Frame told him. **"It's nothing. It's just the Host storage deck. That's where we keep the robots."**

The Doctor observed the screen in front of him. Nothing was adding up. "Well, what's that? Do you see that panel? Black. It's registering nothing. No power, no heat, no light."

**"I've never seen it before."**

"One hundred percent shielded. What's down there?"

**"I'll try intensifying the scanner."**

"Let me know if you find anything. And keep those engines going."

* * *

The Doctor settled back next to Rose as the rest of the group finished their food break. Rose immediately shifted so she was leaning her head on his shoulder instead of the wall. "How's our Midshipman Frame doing?" Rose asked gently.

"Fine for the moment," he informed her. "But, I have to be honest, Rose. Things aren't looking good. I have no idea how to get us out of this mess."

"You'll figure it out," she said with complete faith. "You always do."

_But, at what cost?_ he asked himself.

Astrid interrupted his musings by holding a plate of food in front of his face. "Saved you some. You might be a Time King from Gaddabee, but, you need to eat."

Rose suppressed a giggle. Time King from Gaddabee. She'd have to remember that.

"Yeah, thanks," he responded half heartedly. "Here, you need to try and eat a bit," he told Rose.

She sighed and took a small bite of bread, knowing there was no point in arguing with the "Time King."

Astrid took a seat across from them and said casually, "So, you look good for nine hundred and three."

Rose snorted. "Yeah? You should see him in the mornings."

"Okay!"

Rose sat up straighter. "Excuse me?"

Astrid blushed and began stammering as she avoided eye contact. "Oh, I mean... Not like, uh... Not like that. Obviously. I mean you two are... Aren't you? Or are just friends... Are you a Time Queen?"

Mister Copper, unaware of the awkward conversation happening, stepped in with, "Doctor, it must be well past midnight, Earth time. Christmas Day."

"So it is," he said as he gave the man a gentle smile. He then put his arm around Rose and drew her closer. "Merry Christmas," he whispered in her ear.

She snuggled her head closer to his chest. "Merry Christmas, Doctor."

"This Christmas thing, what's it all about?" the blonde waitress asked curiously.

The Doctor gave a dramatic sigh. "Long story. I should know, I was there. I got the last room."

"Shut up." Rose smacked his chest playfully.

"But, if the planet's waking up, can't we signal them? They could send up a rocket or something," Mister Copper suggested.

Shaking his head, the Doctor said, "They don't have spaceships."

"No, I read about it. They have shuffles. Space shuffles."

"Mister Copper, this degree in Earthonomics, where's it from?"

"Honestly?"

"Just between us," the Doctor told him conspiratorially.

"Mrs Golightly's Happy Travelling University and Dry Cleaners," he admitted.

Rose perked up at the horribly fake sounding school. "Seriously?"

Astrid was in complete shock. "You- you lied to the company to get the job?"

"I wasted my life on Sto," he told them. "I was a travelling salesman, always on the road, and I reached retirement with nothing to show for it. Not even a home. And Earth sounded so exotic."

The Doctor winked at Rose. "Hmm. I suppose it is, yeah."

"How come you know it so well?" Astrid asked the pair.

The Doctor looked a bit nervous, but answered as honestly as possible. "I was sort of, a few years ago, I was sort of made, well, sort of homeless, and, uh, there was the Earth. And there was this girl who lived on Earth. And suddenly everything was, well, everything was just a little bit better."

Rose ducked her head in embarrassment but squeezed the Doctor's hand for support.

Catching what the Doctor was hinting at, Astrid exclaimed to Rose, "You're from Earth? That's amazing!"

"I suppose so, yeah," Rose said quietly.

"The thing is, if we survive this, there'll be police and all sorts of investigations," Mister Copper informed them. "Now the minimum penalty for space lane fraud is ten years in jail. I'm an old man. I won't survive ten years."

Before anyone could respond, a loud noise reverberated through the corridor. The Doctor shot up and grabbed Rose quickly when he saw a large dent appear in one of the doors. "A Host! Move! Come on!"

* * *

They all raced as quickly as possible through the narrow corridors until they reached the next bulkhead. The Doctor immediately soniced the door open and lead everyone through. The bulkhead door led to the Engine Room. The very large Engine Room, that just so happened to have a gapping hole in the center with only a narrow fallen beam as the way across it. Below, the fire and steam burned heavily.

There was a collective gasp throughout the group. Rose's knees almost buckled at the sight. Suddenly, she was no longer Rose Tyler on the Titanic. She was Rose Tyler, prisoner of the Master, watching the last of the humans burning in "Utopia."

Observing the room, Rickston's eyes fell on the fallen beam. "Is that the only way across?"

The Doctor shot him an annoyed look. "On the other hand, it _is_ a way across."

"The engines are open," Astrid stated.

"Nuclear storm drive. As soon as it stops, the Titanic falls." The Doctor looked to his right and took in the sight of Rose. She was still clutching his hand, but, her eyes were unfocused, and moving rapidly around the room. He realised very quickly that she was not seeing the Engine Room, but instead was trapped in some sort of flashback. "Rose," He said quietly. "Rose I need you to come back to me. Whatever you're seeing right now is not real. You are with me. Feel my hand in your's? Good girl," he praised when he felt her lightly squeeze his hand. "Come back to me."

Morvin moved slightly closer to the edge and spoke up, "But that thing, it'll never take our weight."

"You're going last, mate," Rickston told him.

"It's nitrofin metal. It's stronger than it looks," the Doctor informed them all, praying he was right.

Looking uneasy, Morvin took another step forward. "All the same, Rickston's right. Me and Foon should-" Taking one last step forward, the metal gave way under his foot, causing him to fall into the engine furnace.

Rose was immediately ripped back to the present and screamed with fright. The Doctor quickly shoved her into Mister Copper's arms and instead wrapped his arms around Foon to keep her from following her husband over.

"Morvin!" the hysterical woman cried.

"I told you. I told you!" Rickston shouted.

"Just shut up. Shut up!" Mister Copper snapped as he gently rocked Rose's trembling frame.

"Bring him back!" Foon begged. "Can't you bring him back? Bring him back, Doctor!"

The Doctor clutched the woman. "I can't. I'm sorry, I can't."

"You promised me."

Feeling his hearts break, he responded, "I know. I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

Rose whimpered as she heard the sound of the Hosts making their way closer. Catching on, Mister Copper said, "Doctor, I rather think that those things have got our scent."

Making his decision Rickston placed his foot on the beam. "I'm not waiting."

"Careful. Take it slowly!" the Doctor shouted to him as he stood and left Foon in Astrid's care.

The ship begin to shake with another aftershock, causing Rickston to fall to his knees. "Oh, Vot help me," the man pleaded.

"You're okay. A step at a time. Come on, you can do it."

They all began to hear a familiar chant.**_ "Kill. Kill. Kill." _**

"They're getting nearer," Mister Copper announced.

The Doctor undid his bow tie and pulled out the Sonic Screwdriver. He began to run it across the bulkhead door. "Seal us in."

"You're leaving us trapped, wouldn't you say?"

Rose finally spoke up, "Never say trapped, just inconveniently circumstanced."

"Oh."

"That's my girl!" the Doctor beamed despite the terror around them.

"I'm okay," Rickston called out when he almost fell once more.

"Oh good," Rose mumbled.

Foon continued to sob in Astrid's arms as she grasped at straws. "Maybe he's all right. Maybe, maybe there's a gravity curve down there or something. I don't know. Maybe he's just unconscious."

"I'm sorry, Foon. He's gone," the waitress told her sadly.

Rose watched the exchange and felt more tears stream down her own cheeks. It was so unfair. She hated this. She didn't want to do it anymore. She was so tired of watching people suffer and die. Rose longed to hear the Doctor cheer, "Just this once! Everybody lives!"

* * *

"Yes. Oh. yes! Who's good!" Rickston exclaimed when he made it to the other side.

The Doctor looked to the smallest member of their party. "Bannakaffalatta, you go next."

"Bannakaffalatta small," the little red man agreed as he hurried onto the beam.

"Slowly!"

"They've found us," Mister Copper cried when the heard pounding on the bulkhead door.

Wasting no time, the Doctor grabbed Astrid's arm. "Astrid, get across right now."

"What about you?" she questioned.

"Just do it. Go on. Mister Copper, we can't wait."

The older man looked unsure. "No, but we-"

"Don't argue," he told the man. "Rose, you're next. Just follow Mister Copper. You'll be fine."

"I'm scared," she admitted as she pulled him in for a hug.

"I know. But, we can do this." He placed a kiss on her forehead and gently guided her to the beam. "Slow and steady," he encouraged. He looked back to Morvin's grieving wife. "Foon, you've got to get across right now."

"What for? What am I going to do without him?" she pleaded.

"Doctor?" Rickston called out over the loud banging on the Hosts. "The door's locked!"

The Doctor ignored him and kept his focus on Foon. "Just think. What would he want, eh?"

"He don't want nothing. He's dead!" she cried.

Rickston shouted once more, "Doctor, I can't open the door. We need the whirling key thing of yours."

"I can't leave her!" the Time Lord replied.

"She'll get us all killed if we can't get out!"

"Doctor, please. We have to do something," Rose said from her place on the beam.

With a sigh, he turned his attention back to Foon. "Mrs van Hoff, I am coming back for you. All right?" When she nodded, he joined the others in the unstable bridge.

"Too many people!" Bannakaffalatta yelled when the beam began to shake.

"Oi! Don't get spiky with me. Keep going."

"It's going to fall," Astrid said when she made it closer to the end.

"It's just settling. Keep going," the Doctor encouraged. Suddenly everything went silent. They all stopped and looked at one another.

"What's happening?" Rose asked over her shoulder.

"They've stopped," the other blonde woman said.

"Gone away?" Bannakaffalatta suggested.

Rose shook her head. "That doesn't make sense."

The Doctor agreed. "Why would they give up?"

"Unless-"

Rickston cut her off. "Never mind that. Keep coming."

"Where have they gone?" the Doctor continued to question. "Where are the Host?"

"As I was saying before," Rose stated loudly. "Perhaps they found another way in."

Following the line of thought Mister Copper looked up. "I'm afraid we've forgotten the traditions of Christmas. That angels have wings!"

Several Hosts glided down from the ceiling and surrounded them. "**_Information. Kill," _**one of Host informed as the all removed their halos and held them in the ready position as weapons.

"Arm yourself, all of you," the Doctor commanded.

Everyone grabbed whatever they could, mostly bits of broken piping, and used that as bats against the razor sharp halos. It was a heavy fight as they all swung and sent the Host's weapons flying. They did well at first, but, were quickly becoming overwhelmed. The Doctor was the first to be hit as one of the halos grazed his arm. Rose was struck next, as she was sliced across the stomach. The offending halo that hurt her, then made it's way forward and cut across Mister Copper's side.

Feeling defeated Astrid cried, "I can't!"

The little red alien in from of her stood tall and announced, "Bannakaffalatta stop. Bannakaffalatta proud. Bannakaffalatta cyborg!" He lifted his shirt, revealing his robotic stomach, and sent an energy pulse that short circuited the Hosts. Causing all but one to fall into the furnace below. The remaining Host fell face first onto the beam, behind the Doctor.

"Electromagnetic pulse took out the robotics. Oh, Bannakaffalatta, that was brilliant!" the Time Lord cheered.

Astrid raced forward as their hero collapsed. "He's used all his power," she informed them, her voice laced with heartbreak.

"Did good?" he asked her.

"You saved our lives."

"Bannakaffalatta happy."

"We can recharge you. Get you to a power point and just plug you in."

"Too late."

"No," she denied, "but you got to get me that drink, remember?"

Bannakaffalatta smiled. "Pretty girl." With that his eyes closed, and Bannakaffalatta was gone.

Slowly and with respect, Astrid began to refasten the little red alien's shirt, but, was stopped by Mister Copper. "I'm sorry. Forgive me," he said reverently as he pulled a component from Bannakaffalatta's chest.

"Leave him alone!" Astrid snapped.

"It's the EMP transmitter. He'd want us to use it. I used to sell these things. They'd always give me a bed for the night in the cyborg caravans. They're good people. But if we can recharge it, we can use it as a weapon against the rest of the Host. Bannakaffalatta might have saved us all."

"Do you think?" Rickston asked sarcastically before pointing behind the Doctor and Rose who were still on the beam. "Try telling him that."

The Host that had landed behind the Doctor began to shift and stand up. **_"Information. Reboot." _**

Rose sucked in a breath. "Doctor..."

"Use the EMP!" Rickston suggested.

Mister Copper fiddled with it, but declared, "It's dead. It's dead!"

"It's got to have emergency!" Astrid cried.

The Doctor backed up a few steps, completely hiding Rose from the Host's view. "No, no, no. Hold on. Override loophole. Security protocol ten. Six six six. Er, twenty one, four, five, six, seven, eight. I don't know, forty two?"

"One!" Rose suddenly shouted.

The Host straightened. "**_Information. State request." _**

The Doctor nodded. _One? Really? _he thought to himself. "Good. Right. You've been ordered to kill the survivors, but why?"

**_"Information. No witnesses." _**

"But this ship's going to fall on the Earth and kill everyone. The human race have nothing to do with the Titanic, so that contravenes your orders, yes?"

**_"Information. Incorrect."_**

"But why do you want to destroy the Earth?"

**_"Information. It is the plan." _**

The Doctor cocked his head. "What plan?"

**_"Information. Protocol grants you only three questions. These three questions have been used." _**

"Oh my god," Rose muttered.

"Well, you could have warned me," the Doctor said as his shoulders slumped.

The Host directed it's gaze forward. **_"Information. Now you will die." _**

Rose gripped the Doctor's arm tightly, mentally preparing for the worst, but watched in shock as a rope appeared around the Host's torso.

Foon stepped up from the platform and tightened the lasso. "You're coming with me," she informed the angel darkly before stepping off the edge, and dragging the Host with her into the fiery furnace below.

"No!" the Doctor screamed.

Even in her weakened state, Rose reached around the Doctor and tried to grab the last remaining bit of rope, hoping to stop Foon's descent. Seeing she was about to fall, the Doctor grabbed her waist tightly, causing her to cry out in pain. "What?" His question was answered though as he pulled his arm away and saw the blood soaking her dress. "Rose?"

She buried her face in his chest. "It's not fair!"

She was right. It wasn't fair. Nothing in his bloody life was fair. The Doctor held Rose tightly as he maneuvered them off the beam and onto the platform. He felt her body tremble as sobs wracked her frame. Once upon a time, while Rose still would have been devastated by the night's events, she would have remained strong, wanting to be supportive of the remaining survivors. She would have waited until they were in the privacy of the TARDIS before she broke down. But, now she was a mess and it was all his fault. She had been doing so well in her recovery. She still had bad moments, but her light would shine through those times. But, all because he wanted to have a nice normal Christmas with a dash of adventure, she was broken. And it was all his fault. Rose had witnessed too many deaths and it was going to stop now.

"No more," he vowed.

* * *

_**Coming Soon: Part Six.**_

**Please Review! xoxo**


	7. Part Six

**A/N: So sorry about the wait! As always, many many thanks to my followers, those who have favorited, and those who have left such wonderful reviews. This chapter and I didn't get a long very well. I hope you like it!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or anything related. That all goes to the BBC. *Some lines below are borrowed from the episode Voyage of the Damned. Credit for those lines belong to their respective writers.***

* * *

_"No more."_

Rose sucked in a deep breath. Somewhere in the dark recesses of her mind she heard a wolf howling. "No more," the Doctor had said. Well, he was right. There would be no more falling apart for her. She was Rose Tyler. Daughter of Pete and Jackie Tyler. Once upon a time she was a meager shop girl who lived on a council estate, but, now she was the Doctor's companion and he needed her to be brave. Pushing away the trauma and emotions racing through her, Rose lifted her gaze to the Doctor's and nodded.

The Doctor squeezed her hand in acknowledgement and quickly led them out of the awful engine room and into a nearby corridor. He turned to the remaining survivors. "Right. Get yourself up to Reception One. Once you're there, Mister Copper, you've got staff access to the computer. Try to find a way of transmitting an SOS. Astrid, you're in charge of this." He hands her the EMP transmitter. "Once it's powered up, it'll take out a Host within fifty yards but then it needs sixty seconds to recharge. Got it? Rickston, take this." Reluctantly, he hands the man the sonic screwdriver. "I've preset it. Just hold down that button, it'll open doors. Do not lose it! You got that? Now go and open the next door. Go on, go!"

Rickston jumped. "All right!"

Locating the nearest first aid kit, the Doctor gave it to Mister Copper. "Mister Copper, you're going to need this. I need you fighting fit. Astrid, where's the power points?"

"Under the comms," the waitress responded before showing him the exact location to plug the transmitter in.

"See, when it's ready, that blue light comes on there," he informed her.

Astrid observed him closely. "You're talking as if you're not coming with us."

"There's something down on deck thirty one. I'm going to find out what it is."

"And what about you, Rose?"

The Doctor stopped and looked at the woman on his left. What about Rose? She was clearly unwell. Taking her with him would be completely foolish, but, could he really risk leaving her behind? The Doctor met his companion's gaze. They held the stare for a few seconds before Rose gave the tiniest of nods. The Doctor responded in kind before turning to Astrid and saying, "She's coming with me."

"Is that really a good idea? What if you meet a Host?"

"Well, then I'll just have some fun!"

"Sounds like you do this kind of thing all the time," she mused.

He shook his head. "Not by choice."

"Astrid, we live a wonderful life," Rose said suddenly, speaking up for the first time since Foon had sacrificed herself. "Truly, we get to see and experience things you could never imagine in your wildest dreams. But, our kind of life comes with risks. Sometimes we have to make really hard decisions, because no one else will. Sometimes we have to put our life on the line to save the world."

Astrid shifted uncomfortably. "But, is it worth it?"

Rose gave a small smile. "For me? Always."

"I'm sort of unemployed now. I was thinking the blue box is kind of small, but I could squeeze in it, like a stowaway."

"You heard Rose. It's not always safe," the Doctor told her with a sigh.

"So, you need someone to take care of you two. I've got no one back on Sto. No family, just me. So what do you think? Can I come with you?"

The Doctor and Rose made brief eye contact before the Doctor answered with, "Let's get through this and then we'll talk about it." Astrid's response was cut off by a loud bang, echoing through the ship. The Doctor jumped up and made contact with the Bridge. "Mister Frame, you still with us?"

**"It's the engines, sir. Final phase. There's nothing more I can do. We've got only eight minutes left,"** the young man answered.

"Don't worry, I'll get there."

**"But the bridge is sealed off." **

"Yeah, yeah, working on it. I'll get there, Mister Frame, somehow," the Doctor promised before signing off. He looked at the transmitter and saw that it was finished. "All charged up? Mister Copper, look after her." He nodded to the waitress next to him. "Astrid, look after him. Rickston, uh, look after yourself. And we'll see you again, I promise."

"Bye," Rose said quietly to the much smaller group.

"Be careful!" Astrid called after them.

* * *

The Doctor quickly led Rose back into the Engine Room. "Ready?" he asked her cautiously.

Rose nodded before taking a deep breath and placing her right foot on the makeshift bridge. "Like it or not, here we come," she whispered.

The Doctor placed a chaste kiss on her lips before leading them back the way they came.

* * *

In under a minute they had already found their way to the Galley and were suddenly surrounded by four Heavenly Hosts. The Doctor dropped Rose's hand and held up is own in surrender. "Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. Security protocol one. Do you hear me? One. One! Okay, that gives me three questions. Three questions to save my life, am I right?"

Rose grimaced when she realised what he had done.

**_"Information. Correct,"_** the Host directly in front of them answered.

The Doctor's eyes grew wide. "No, that wasn't one of them. I didn't mean it. That's not fair. Can I start again?"

"Oh my god," Rose muttered.

**_"Information. No," _**the Host replied.

"No!" he shouted. "No, no, no, no. That wasn't a question either. Blimey. One question left."

Rose gripped his arm tightly. "Better make this one count, Doctor."

"One question. So, you've been given orders to kill the survivors but survivors must therefore be passengers or staff, but not us. We're not passengers. We're not staff. Go on, scan us. You must have bio-records. No such persons on board. We don't exist, therefore you can't kill us. Therefore, we're a couple of stowaways, and stowaways should be arrested and taken to the nearest figure of authority. And I reckon the nearest figure of authority is on deck thirty one. Final question. Am I right?"

The Host cocked it's head to the side. **_"Information. Correct."_**

The Doctor preened. "Brilliant. Take me to your leader." He turned to Rose. "I've always wanted to say that."

"You _have_ said it before. You starting to forget things, old man?" she teased as the Hosts came to either side of them.

He scoffed. "Never! I just meant that I always wanted to say it in _this _body."

"Rigghhtt."

* * *

The Doctor and Rose both observed the wreckage that was Deck Thirty One. Clearly there had been several explosions in there. The Doctor gave a whistle. "Wow. Now that is what you call a fixer upper. Come on then, Host with the most, this ultimate authority of yours. Who is it?"

The Host moved to open a nearby pair of doors.

"What's that?" Rose asked as a cloud of fog was the first thing to exit the doors.

"Oh, that's clever." He answered, "That's an omnistate impact chamber. Indestructible. You can survive anything in there. Sit through a supernova. Or a shipwreck. Only one person can have the power and the money to hide themselves on board like this and I should know, because..."

A large mechanical device with small wheels rolled through the doors. "My name is Max," the head resting atop the machine answered. At the same time his gold tooth gleamed.

"It really does that," the Doctor stated.

"Who the hell is this?" Max Capricorn asked rudely.

"I'm the Doctor and this is Rose."

The latter waved and said, "Hello."

**_"Information. Stowaways,"_** the Host provided.

The Doctor shrugged. "Well..."

"Kill them," Max ordered.

"Oh, no, no, no. Wait, but you can't. Not now. Come on, Max. You've given me so much good material like, how to get ahead in business. See? Head? Head in business? No?" He paused and saw Rose hiding her giggles behind her hand. Despite the horrible experiences they recently had and were still having. It was nice to see her smile about something. "Rose thinks it's funny. One of the many reasons I keep her around!"

"Oh, ho, ho, the office joker. I like a funny man. No one's been funny with me for years."

"Huh. Wonder why?" Rose rolled her eyes.

Max gave a slight jerk of his head. "A hundred and seventy six years of running the company have taken their toll."

"Yeah, but, nice wheels," the Doctor complimented with a hint of sarcasm.

"No, a life support system," he corrected, "in a society that despises cyborgs. I've had to hide away for years, running the company by hologram. Host, situation report."

The Host stepped forward. **_"Information. Titanic is still in orbit." _**

"Let me see. We should have crashed by now. What's gone wrong?" Max rolled forward. "The engines are still running! They should have stopped!"

"When they do, the Earth gets roasted. I don't understand. What's the Earth got to do with it?" the Doctor asked.

"This interview is terminated."

"No. No, no, no, no, no. Hold on, hold on, hold on. Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. I can work it out. It's like a task. I'm your apprentice. Just watch me. So, business is failing and you wreck the ship so that makes things even worse. Oh, yes! No. Yes. The business isn't failing, it's failed. Past tense."

As the Doctor spoke, Rose felt the oddest tingle on the back of her neck. Turning around she saw Astrid appear out of nowhere and hid behind some boxes. Taking advantage of the Doctor distracting Max Capricorn, Rose slowly began to step closer to the waitress.

Meanwhile, Max responded, "My own board voted me out. Stabbed me in the back."

"If you had a back," the Doctor subtly mentioned. "So, you scupper the ship, wipe out any survivors just in case anyone's rumbled you and the board find their shares halved in value. Oh, but that's not enough. No. Because if a Max Capricorn ship hits the Earth, it destroys an entire planet. Outrage back home. Scandal! The business is wiped out."

"And the whole board thrown in jail for mass murder."

"While you sit there, safe inside the impact chamber."

"I have men waiting to retrieve me from the ruins and enough off-world accounts to retire me to the beaches of Penhaxico Two, where the ladies, so I'm told, are very fond of metal."

The Doctor looked at the man who had turned himself into a metal creature with disgust. "So that's the plan. A retirement plan. Two thousand people on this ship, six billion underneath us, all of them slaughtered, and why? Because Max Capricorn is a loser."

He smirked. "I never lose."

"You can't even sink the Titanic."

"Oh, but I can, Doctor. I can cancel the engines from here!"

Alarms started blaring as the ship began to tremble.

"You can't do this!" the Doctor shouted.

"Host, hold him."

* * *

Rose finally made it to Astrid and whispered, "What the hell are you doing here?!"

"Saving you two!" she answered truthfully before nodding to a fork lift. "See that there? I reckon I could drive that."

"Astrid, no! It's too dangerous. Let the Doctor and I handle this."

"You're dead on your feet, Rose. I can see it. Your eyes keep un-focusing so I know you can't see straight right now. Just let me do this. Remember what you told me? 'Sometimes we have to put our life on the line to save the world.' I might not be worth much, but, I can do this."

Seeing the similarities between this young naive waitress and herself, Rose nodded before adding, "Fine. But, we'll do this together."

* * *

"Not so clever now, Doctor," Max continued to taunt as his Hosts gripped the Doctor's arms tightly. Rendering him unmovable. "A shame we couldn't work together. You're rather good. All that banter yet not a word wasted. Time for me to retire. The Titanic is falling. The sky will burn. Let the Christmas inferno commence. Oh. Oh, Host. Kill him."

"Oi!" Rose shouted from her place on the forklift. "I've got some complaints about your customer service."

"And on that note," Astrid added, "Mister Capricorn! I resign." Pushing on the gas pedal, she drove towards Max Capricorn.

The Doctor watched in disbelief. Rose had been so quiet, he had almost forgot she was there as he went back and forth the robotic man. He hadn't realised she had wandered off. "Astrid, Rose, don't!" he shouted when he saw the fork lift connect with Max's life support machine.

In protection of their leader, the closest Host removed it's halo and shot it towards the fork lift. The weapon placed a slice on Rose's shoulder before bouncing off and cutting the wires on the cab.

"He's cut the brake line!" the Doctor yelled as he struggled against his captors. He had to get Rose out of there. Did she not realise how foolish she was being? The TARDIS was too far for their connection to be very strong. It dawned on him then. That's why she had been so out of sorts! So that meant that if something were to happen to her... that would be it. She would be gone forever.

Rose and Astrid looked at each other. They knew that this was it. There was no stopping now, because they literally couldn't. They had to stop Max, because if they didn't, then the Earth would be no more. The Doctor's northern tone echoed through Rose's mind. _"I could save the world but lose you."_

Astrid charged the fork lift forward and was able to lift Max and his life support machine off the ground. Seeing where they were headed, Rose spared a final glance to the Time Lord on her right and mouthed, "I love you."

"ROSE!" the Doctor screamed.

Astrid flinched at the sound. There would be no one to cry like that for her when she died, but, Rose? Rose would be missed so much. Too much. Just like how Mister Capricorn needed his machine to live, the Doctor needed Rose. In her final act of bravery, Astrid used one hand to let go of the wheel and, with all the strength she could muster, pushed Rose out of the cab. She clenched her eyes shut and pushed Max Capricorn over the railing and into the engines below. The fork lift followed the life support machine over the edge.

* * *

The Doctor watched as Astrid shoved Rose out of the fork lift. He broke away from his captors and slammed his body down, grabbing Rose before she could follow Max and Astrid's decent into the engines.

Rose gasped as felt arms embrace her tightly and she realised what had happened. She leaned away from the Doctor and watched as the waitress, who had been so kind to them, the young woman who just wanted to see the stars, fall to her death. "Astrid!" she shouted, reaching out to her, despite the fact that she knew it wouldn't help. She looked at the Doctor with wide eyes. "You said no more. Now tell me she's not dead."

The Doctor stood and gripped her shoulders. "Rose, we have to get to the Bridge. This ship is about to crash into the Earth."

As if knowing what he had just said a computerised voice announced,** "Titanic falling. Voyage terminated. Voyage terminated."**

* * *

Rose ducked under the Doctor's arm as the Host flew them up and smashed into the Bridge.

**"Deadlock broken,"** the computer informed.

The Doctor stood and helped Rose up. Looking around they spotted a young, frightened man. "Ah, Midshipman Frame. At last."

"Uh... but... but, the Host!" he sputtered out.

"Controller dead, they divert to the next highest authority, and that's me," the Doctor told him darkly.

"There's nothing we can do. There's no power. The ship's going to fall."

Rose felt a fresh wave of dizziness as she stumbled forward and grabbed the control panel to steady herself.

At the same time the computer reiterated Midshipman Frame's words. **"Titanic falling."**

The Doctor moved to the ship's wheel before asking the other man, "What's your first name?"

"Alonso," he responded immediately.

"Shut up," Rose told him as she felt a small grin cross her face.

**"Titanic falling,"** the computer chimed in.

The Doctor shook his head and felt his own grin start to form. "You're kidding me."

Midshipman Frame watched as these two odd characters stared at him in disbelief. "What?" he asked nervously.

"That's something else I've always wanted to say." The Doctor paused and threw a wink to Rose. "Allons-y, Alonso!"

* * *

_**Coming Soon: Part Seven.**_

**Please review! xoxo**


	8. Part Seven

**A/N: Apologies for the wait! Lots going on in real life. Many thanks to my followers, those who have favorited, and those who have reviewed. I appreciate every single one of you. Honestly. Now then, this chapter is a bit shorter than I would have liked, but, I really wanted to end it where I did. Just keep in mind that this is not the last chapter. There's a bit more after this :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or anything related. That goes to the BBC. *Some lines below are borrowed from the episode Voyage of the Damned. Credit for those lines belong to their respective writers.***

* * *

The Titanic was falling straight towards the planet below. Rose and Alonso, who couldn't really help at this point, held on tightly as the Doctor did his best to steer the ship away from the Earth. Alarms started baring when the ship began to burn as it entered the upper atmosphere.

"Rose!" the Doctor shouted as he clutched the ship's wheel. "Turn on that scanner there!" He pointed with his foot.

Rose did as she was directed. The Doctor swore in a language the TARDIS chose not to translate when he saw the results. The Titanic was headed right for west Central London. Of bloody course. Quickly, the Doctor grabbed a nearby comm and dialed a number he hadn't had to use in a long while. "Oh. Hello, yes. Could you get me Buckingham Palace?" he said into the receiver. "Listen to me. Security code seven seven one. Now get out of there!"

Rose squeezed her eyes shut when she saw the building they were about to hit. _Oh, this is very bad,_ she thought to herself.

**"Engines active. Engines active," **the computer announced right as the Doctor pulled the Titanic out of it's nose dive, just barely missing the Palace.

Rose opened her eyes in surprise when she felt the ship level out and heard the Doctor and Midshipman Frame laugh. "Oh my god," she whispered.

"Used the heat of re-entry to fire up the secondary storm drive. Unsinkable, that's me," the Doctor preened.

Alonso sagged against the wall in relief. "We made it."

The Doctor scooped Rose into a hug. "We made it!" he agreed joyfully. "HA!"

Pulling away gently, she reminded him, "Not all of us."

The Doctor's face fell. He had forgotten, just for a moment, the horrors of they saw that night. He nodded solemnly before a thought came to mind.

"Teleport! She was wearing a teleport bracelet." Clutching Rose's hand, he ran from the Bridge.

* * *

"Rickston, sonic!" the Doctor shouted when they ran back into the reception area. He quickly caught the item in question. "Mister Copper, the teleports, have they got emergency settings?"

"I don't know. They should have," the older gentleman told him.

"Doctor, what's happening?" Rose asked as she leaned against a nearby chair.

The Doctor ignored her and continued talking to the other man. "She fell, Mister Copper. She fell. What's the emergency code?"

He stepped forward. "Uh, let me see."

"What the hell are you doing?" Alonso asked as he watched the two men work frantically.

"If a passenger has an accident on shore leave and they're still wearing their teleport, their molecules are automatically suspended and held in stasis, so of we can just trigger the shift," Mister Copper answered.

Rose perked up. "We can bring her back?"

"There!" the Doctor cheered. A grainy picture of Astrid appeared in front of them.

"I'm falling," her voice echoed.

"Only halfway there." The Doctor continued to sonic the teleport station. "Come on."

"I keep falling."

"Feed back the molecule grid. Boost it with the restoration matrix. No, no, no, no, no! Need more phase containment!"

Rose began crying as she watched the Doctor try so hard to bring Astrid back.

"Doctor," Mister Copper said softly.

"No!" he ignored him. "If I can just link up the surface suspension."

"Doctor, she's gone."

"I just need to override the safety. I can do this. I can do it," the Time Lord insisted.

"Doctor, let her go," the older man said, not unkindly.

"I can do anything!" he shouted, but stopped himself when he saw Rose suppressing her sobs.

Mister Copper rested his hand on the Doctor's shoulder. "There's not enough left. The system was too badly damaged. She's just atoms, Doctor. An echo with the ghost of consciousness. She's stardust."

The Doctor turned to face Astrid, but saw the Rose had beat him to it. And her eyes were glowing.

"Astrid Peth, citizen of Sto. The woman who looked at the stars and dreamt of travelling," the ethereal voice of the Bad Wolf said strongly. "You saved Time's Champion and Time's Heart. In payment for your sacrifice, I give you a gift. You can travel the stars forever." With a wave of her hand, the window behind Astrid opened. With another wave, Astrid's form turned into a gold specks of light and floated out the window. As the glow receded from Rose's eyes, her knees buckled. The Doctor caught her just before she hit the floor.

* * *

Rose slowly blinked her eyes opened and realised that the Doctor was clutching her tightly to his chest. Feeling her breathing pattern change, the he pulled away and cupped her cheek. "Hello," she greeted softly.

"Hello. We've got to stop meeting like this." He gave a weak smile.

She frowned as she tried to recall what exactly caused her to pass out. "What happened?"

"You don't remember?"

Rose concentrated hard as bits and pieces floated to her awareness. "Astrid... she's free now, yeah? She's okay?"

The Doctor kissed her forehead. "Yeah. She's okay."

"The engines have stabilised," Alonso announced as he entered the room. "We're holding steady till we get help, and I've sent the SOS. A rescue ship should be here within twenty minutes. And they're digging out the records on Max Capricorn. It should be quite a story."

"Are there any other survivors?" Rose asked cautiously as she slowly sat up.

"The computer's not picking up on any other life forms, I'm afraid. There could just be a glitch in the system, but I think we're the only ones who made it."

"What about any of the lifeboats?" the Doctor brought up, still holding out hope for Rose that one of the friends she had made earlier in the evening had survived.

"Only one is unaccounted for."

"So there could be survivors?"

"It's highly unlikely. It was one of the small pods that's used for supplies. I don't even think there would be room for anyone. And if there were any life forms aboard, that were alive, the life boat would have automatically sent out a distress signal. There's been nothing."

Rose rubbed her eyes before a thought crossed her mind. "If there was no one aboard... then how did it leave?"

Alonso shrugged. "It was near where the first meteor hit. I think it dislodged on impact."

Rose nodded and vowed to herself that she would not cry. Later, when she was alone in the TARDIS, she would let herself crumble. But, she has let the Doctor see her weaknesses for too many times throughout the night. He needed a strong companion. Not someone who would fall apart every five minutes.

The Doctor stood and pulled Rose forward, towards the teleport station. They needed to leave before the rescue ship arrived and asked unwanted questions.

"They'll want to talk to all of us, I suppose," Mister Copper said with a sigh.

"I'd have thought so, yeah," Alonso agreed.

"I think one or two inconvenient truths might come to light. Still, it's my own fault, and ten years in jail is better than dying."

Suddenly, Rickston Slade was standing in front of them. "Doctor, I never said thank you." He embraced the Time Lord enthusiastically with tears in his eyes. "The funny thing is, I said Max Capricorn was falling apart. Just before the crash, I sold all my shares, transferred them to his rivals. It's made me rich. What do you think of that?"

Rose felt anger burn deep within her. A type of anger she usually saved for the most despicable creatures. "You know what I think of that, Rickston?" She stomped on his foot. "That's for the Steward." She slapped him hard across the face. "That's for the van Hoffs." She slapped his other cheek. "That's for Bannakaffalatta." Finally, she kneed him in the groin. "And that's for Astrid."

The Doctor stared in shock at what Rose had just done. She was rarely one to use violence and normally the Doctor would never encourage that kind of behavior, but honestly, Rickston completely deserved it.

The man growled as he clutched his bits. "You're going to let your woman behave like this?" he asked the Doctor.

"Course I am!" he cheerfully agreed as he tugged Rose closer to his side.

Rickston was saved from responding, when his mobile device began to ring. "Salvain. Those shares. I want them triple bonded and locked."

Mister Cooper watched the horrible man walk away. "Of all the people to survive, he's not the one you would have chosen, is he? But, if you could choose, Doctor, if you decide who lives and who dies, that would make you a monster."

The Doctor looked at him in wonder and was very glad that this man had survived. Grabbing three teleport bracelets, he said, "Mister Copper, I think you deserve one of these." Mister Copper smiled in delight as he put the device around his wrist.

Seeing that they were about to leave, Midshipman Alonso Frame straightened his posture and saluted.

* * *

As soon as they landed back on Earth, the Doctor sought out his mental connection with the TARDIS and saw that they were not far from the ship at all. Immediately, he began to lead Rose home.

"So, Great Britain is part of Europey, and just across the British Channel, you've got Great France and Great Germany," Mister Copper said as he walked with them.

The Doctor shook his head. "No, no, it's just, it's just France and Germany."

"Only Britain is Great," Rose told him with a tongue in teeth smile.

"Oh, and they're all at war with the continent of Ham Erica?" the older man asked.

The Doctor stopped when the reached the TARDIS and scratched his head. "No. Well, not yet. Uh, could argue that one. There she is." He nodded to the ship. "Survive anything."

Rose broke free of the Doctor's grasp and rested against the blue exterior of her home. Just being outside the ship was already making her feel better.

Mister Copper held his hand out and watched as little white flakes fell around them and blanketed the ground below. "You know, between you and me, I don't even think this snow is real. I think it's the ballast from the Titanic's salvage entering the atmosphere."

"Yeah. One of these days it might snow for real."

"That would be nice," Rose agreed.

The older gentleman shuffled his feet. "So, I, I suppose you'll be off..."

The Doctor nodded. "The open sky."

"And, what about me?"

"Rose and I are travelling alone right now. It's best that way."

"What am I supposed to do?"

"Give me that credit card." He held out his hand.

Mister Copper complied. "It's just petty cash. Spending money. It's all done by computer. I didn't really know the currency, so I thought a million might cover it."

Rose gasped. "Sorry, did you just say a million?"

Mister Copper nodded.

"A million? Pounds?" the Doctor asked for clarification.

"That enough for trinkets?" he asked innocently.

"Mister Copper, a million pounds is worth fifty million credits."

His eyes widened. "How much?

"Fifty million and fifty six."

"I've got money," Mister Copper said in disbelief.

"Yes, you have," the Doctor confirmed.

"Oh, my word. Oh, my Vot! Oh, my goodness me. Yee ha!"

Rose laughed at the older man's antics. "Good for you!"

"It's all yours," the Time Lord told him. "Planet Earth. Now, that's a retirement plan. But, just you be careful, though."

Mister Copper nodded. "I will, I will. Oh, I will."

"No interfering. I don't want any trouble. Just, just have a nice life."

"But, I can have a house. A proper house, with a garden, and a door, and. Oh, Doctor, I will make you proud. And I can have a kitchen with chairs, and windows, and plates, and..." Mister Copper began to skip away.

"Where are you going?" Rose called out to him.

"Well, I've no idea!" he told her with a laugh.

The Doctor gave Rose a small smile. "No, us neither."

Mister Copper stopped and called back, "But, Doctor, I won't forget her."

Rose looked up and saw a mix of blue and gold starlight streak across the sky.

"Merry Christmas, Mister Copper," the Doctor said as he led Rose back inside the safety of the TARDIS.

* * *

_**Coming Soon: Part Eight... Excepting one another.**_

**Please Review! xoxo**


	9. Part Eight

**A/N: Hello! Huge thanks to my followers, those who have favorited, and to those who have reviewed. You guys are amazing. I hope you guys like this! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or anything related. That all goes to the BBC.**

* * *

The Doctor watched as Rose circled the console. She was an absolute mess. Her hair was in knots and there was dried blood caked on her dress, but he still thought she was the most gorgeous creature he had ever known. "Rose?" he called softly.

She lifted her eyes to his. "I feel amazing," she replied.

"Excuse me?"

"Since the moment those meteors hit the ship, I've felt horrible. Like I was slowly draining away to nothingness. Like there was a piece of me missing. But now? Now I feel whole again."

The Doctor frowned at her confession. "Rose, I need to check you out in the MedBay."

She shrugged. "There's no need. I know now what the problem is."

"This is serious, Rose. Before everything that happened with the Master, I made the mistake of letting go of whatever ailments you had whenever you told me you were fine." He moved forward to stand directly in front of her. "I almost lost you then and I almost lost you tonight. I will not make the same mistakes again."

Rose leaned forward and embraced the Doctor tightly. "I'm fine, Doctor. Really truly. And I'm not just saying that. It's the TARDIS."

"What do you mean?" he asked as he pulled back.

"Remember what I told you before? We're connected now. In almost every fiber of my being, the TARDIS and I are connected. She's my literal lifeline."

The Doctor's hearts began racing. "I understand that, Rose. But, don't you see how dangerous that is? What if something ever happened to the TARDIS? I couldn't lose you both."

"Silly, Time Lord. You're not going to lose either one of us. The TARDIS and I are both fine."

"But, not always. Don't you remember what happened to the Old Girl the very first time we fell into that parallel universe? Do you remember what happened on Krop Tor? You didn't feel any affects from those instances because it was still too soon. But, what about what happened to you when the Weeping Angel sent us back to 1969? You passed out several times, you were horribly weak, I could barely get you to eat-"

"And it all worked out in the end, so I'm fine now! Doctor, I refuse to live my life in fear that one day something's going to happen to the TARDIS and I'll drop dead." The Doctor practically growled in her response, but she ignored him and continued, "Don't you see the gift we've been given? Because my life as been tied to Her's, that means that I'll most likely get to stay with you a hell of a lot longer than we planned. You're not going to have to watch me grow old and wither away."

"Don't say stuff like that," he whispered.

"Don't make me feel like you hate that I'm stuck with you."

"Rose! I would never... I could never..."

She shook her head and gave a small smile. "I know, Doctor. I know that you don't actually feel that way."

He leaned forward and pressed his lips to her forehead. "I was so scared, Rose. I was so scared that I was going to lose you up there. You were so weak, and then... then you went all Bad Wolf."

"Did I?"

The Doctor sighed, forgetting that she didn't remember those details. "You did. I reckon it was the Old Girl's little way of protecting you as best she could from so far away." The lights in the control room flickered in response. "I'll take that as a yes then?" the Doctor said with a chuckle.

"But, why can't I remember?" Rose questioned.

He rubbed his hand over his face as he answered, "Same reason you can't remember everything that happened on Satellite 5 is my guess. Rose, when you go all Bad Wolfy, you basically have the entire Time Vortex running through your mind. Remembering all that could quite possibly kill you. Or at the very least, drive you mad."

"I just wished I knew what happened."

"I tell you anything you want to know. But, first, we really do need to visit the MedBay."

She gave a small pout. "Why?"

"Because I know for a fact that one of the Host's halos caught you across the stomach, and while I know that the TARDIS is helping you heal at a faster rate than usual, I really would like to have a look and get it nice and cleaned up."

* * *

"There!" the Doctor announced. "All better."

"Yeah? Where's my lolly?" she asked with a tongue and teeth grin.

He looked around frantically. "Uhhh... All out?"

Rose shook her head. "Rubbish doctor, you are."

"Oi! I'm not rubbish! I just left my stash of lollies in my brown suit."

"Course you did," she said before letting out a yawn.

"Sleepy?"

"A bit. But, I really need a shower before I even think about bed."

"Tell you what then, you go on and shower and I'll meet you in your room when your done? Is that okay?"

"Sounds fine. Give me about an hour, yeah?"

"Perfect."

* * *

Rose took a deep breath as she felt the hot water from her shower, pour down her back. It had been one hell of a day. Between saying goodbye to both Jack and Martha, having a slight run in with a past version of the Doctor, and then everything that happened aboard the Titanic, she was wiped.

The Titanic.

She cringed. It definitely was not one of those "everybody lives" moments. Oh, how she wished it was.

She clamped her eyes shut, but was met with an image of Aleena. The sweet girl she had met right before the meteorites hit. She curses herself as she remembers the promise she gave the girl...

_"Listen, my friend and I are going to figure out what's going on around here alright. I promise. Go enjoy the rest of the evening with your family."_

And they figured it out. Just not before practically everyone on the ship was killed.

Rose remembered the look of hope on the young girl's face.

_"You sure you and your friend will work everything out?" _she had asked.

_"Promise."_

Images of the Steward being hurtled out into space hit her next, followed by the sight of hundreds of bodies floating amongst the stars. Including Aleena's mother, Josie.

Death after death came back to her in waves. Morvin, Foon, Bannakaffalatta, all of them.

Her breathing became erratic as she saw Astrid falling to her death and she just watched it happen. Even her assault on Rickston came back to haunt her.

Rose felt her knees turn to jelly as she collapsed on the floor of the shower and began sobbing.

* * *

The Doctor bounced joyfully as he made his way towards Rose's bedroom. Not only had he found his bag of lollies. He found three orange ones (her personal favorite) and two banana ones (his personal favorite)! But, to top off all of that, while she showered, he stayed in the MedBay and was able to come up with a new vitamin supplement for her to take. While it wouldn't completely cure her if, Rassilon forbid, something ever did happen to the TARDIS, it would definitely help take away some of the horrible side affects, such as the dizziness and weakness.

Running a hand through his hair, the Doctor opened Rose's bedroom door. "Rose! You'll never guess what I... found..." He looked around the room and found it to be completely empty. Odd that. Suddenly he felt a sense of distress hit him. _Rose! _If his ship could talk, he felt that she would have just yelled that at him. The door to Rose's en suite flung open.

He hurled himself inside and found Rose curled up on the floor of the shower as water beat down on her. Running quickly, the Doctor shut the water off and grabbed a large, fluffy towel, thanking his ship heartily for her care and concern. Rose's nudity wasn't something he was paying any mind to in this moment, but he knew Rose might be embarrassed later on.

Laying the towel over her gently, the Doctor began to speak softly. "Rose? Rose can you hear me?" He heard her give a muffled cry. "Ssshhh. You're alright now, Rose. I'm here and you're safe. I'm going to pick you up now. Okay, love?"

When he saw her give a small nod, he gently picked her up and cradled her in his arms. Not even wanting to bother with moving, the Doctor slid down so he was sitting with his back propped against the wall. He clutched her tightly when he felt her sobs grow stronger. "That's right, love. You just let it all out."

What he wouldn't give to have Jackie in this universe right now. He briefly considered going back before any ghost shifts or their encounter with Torchwood, just so Rose could visit with her mum for a bit. Jackie would first have to agree though to let him alter her memories after, and that would take a bit of convincing, but still, it was just too risky. Unfortunately (or not so unfortunate, depending on who you asked), the Doctor and Rose had visited Jackie Tyler far too often. Their timelines were so entwined trying to land at just the right moment would be next to impossible.

The Doctor kissed the top of Rose's head. Guess it was just the two of them. Rassilon, he was thick. How did he not see that this would happen the second she was alone? She's not even over what happened with the Master, but then, to add everything that happened on the Titanic? That was too much for anyone to bear.

After what felt like hours, but in reality was only forty-five minutes, the last of Rose's sobs abated. Looking at the counter next to him, the Doctor saw a pair of Rose's comfiest jim jams. Sending, once again, a thanks to the TARDIS, the Doctor sat himself up straighter.

"Rose, love?" he said to her as he brushed a lock of hair off her face.

She looked up at him.

"I want you to put your jim jams on now, alright? I'll turn my back, but I'll stay the whole time."

She gave a small nod before scooting off his lap. The Doctor stood slowly as he shook the pins and needs out of his legs, and helped Rose do the same as she clutched the towel to her chest.

Once the Doctor had turned his back, Rose slowly slipped her night clothes on, feeling horribly embarrassed for the display she just presented. God, what must he think of her? She cleared her throat when she was done changing. The Doctor turned around and gave her a tight smile before grabbing her hand and leading her out the door.

Both were shocked to find that they were no longer in Rose's bedroom, but the Doctor's.

"Oh," he exclaimed. "Um. I suppose the TARDIS thinks we should sleep here. Is that alright with you?" he asked timidly.

Rose gave a small nod as the Doctor led her to the bed and told her to get comfy. "I'm just going to get changed and then I'll be right back. Will you be okay?" Again she nodded.

* * *

When the Doctor returned, barely a minute later, he found Rose sitting straight up in bed and staring straight forward. "Rose?"

"You should really just leave me behind."

The Doctor blinked. That was the first time she had spoken since he found her in the shower and that's what she has to say? "I'm sorry... What?"

"I'm a huge liability. I'm broken, Doctor, and I don't know if I'll ever be fixed. You should really just leave me behind."

He crossed the room quickly. "Don't you ever so much as think those terrible things again."

Rose met his gaze. "Why not? It's the truth. I'm a mess, Doctor. I can't even go an entire evening without breaking down."

"That's not true, Rose."

"It is!"

"You were doing just fine up until the collision with the meteors and we lost the TARDIS."

"No, I wasn't," she whispered. "I was a wreck. That's why I slipped into the ladies room. I was having a panic attack and didn't want you to know. God, I couldn't even dance with you because I was so terrified of everyone around us."

"Rose..." the Doctor's hearts broke. He sat down next to her and tried to pull her into his arms, but she resisted.

"See! You feel sorry for me! You feel guilty and responsible. But, I'm a risk, Doctor. Not just to you, but to everyone around us. I even attacked that Rickston bloke and you hate violence!"

"Rose Tyler, I do not feel sorry for you. I'm sad. Sad and mad and, yes, perhaps a bit guilty. But, Rose, you are not a liability! This was too much too soon. Not just for you, but for me too. We're both still recovering from our experiences with the Master. We pushed ourselves too far. And as for Rickston, well, you gave him what's been coming to him for a long time. I don't always approve of violence, but you were defending yourself and your friends from his insults. I can't fault you for that."

Rose blinked back her tears. "I'm just so scared that I'm always going to feel this way."

"I know, Rose. And I understand. But, you won't. We won't. We'll get better. We'll recover. It'll just take us some time."

Rose fell into his embrace. "Good thing you're a Time Lord then, yeah?"

The Doctor chuckled. "Yeah. Come on," he said when he saw her yawn. "Time for bed."

She looked uneasy as they both settled down on the pillows. He stroked her hair softly. "Sleep now, love. I'll be here the whole night."

Rose sighed contently as her eyes closed. "My Doctor."

* * *

Hours later, the Doctor opened his eyes when he felt Rose tossing and turning in her sleep. Placing his fingers on her temples, he began sending her soothing thoughts and banishing the nightmares away.

He tried not to look. He really did, but Rose was projecting rather loudly and suddenly he was hit with several visions.

The Master leaning over her. Threatening her.

The last of the humans. Utopia.

Daleks and Cybermen warring at Canary Wharf.

He saw himself screaming in anguish with the chameleon arch attached to his head.

Finally, he saw Astrid as she plunged to her death.

And lastly, he saw a young girl and heard the promise Rose made to her.

The Doctor slipped out of Rose's mind and shook his head. Something wasn't sitting right as he recalled his and Rose's conversation with Midshipman Alonso Frame...

* * *

_"The computer's not picking up on any other life forms, I'm afraid. There could just be a glitch in the system, but I think we're the only ones who made it."_

_"What about any of the lifeboats?" the Doctor brought up, still holding out hope for Rose that one of the friends she had made earlier in the evening had survived._

_"Only one is unaccounted for."_

_"So there could be survivors?"_

_"It's highly unlikely. It was one of the small pods that's used for supplies. I don't even think there would be room for anyone. And if there were any life forms aboard, that were alive, the life boat would have automatically sent out a distress signal. There's been nothing."_

_Rose rubbed her eyes before a thought crossed her mind. "If there was no one aboard... then how did it leave?"_

_Alonso shrugged. "It was near where the first meteor hit. I think it dislodged on impact."_

* * *

But that didn't make any sense. The Doctor felt a niggling in the back of his mind. Something in the timelines felt off. Incomplete. Something was wrong and if the Doctor didn't at least try to fix it...

He slipped out of bed and placed his hand on the wall, sending a silent plea to his ship to help keep Rose peacefully asleep for as long as possible. He leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on Rose's cheek. "I know I promised to stay the whole night, but if I'm right about what I'm thinking, then I think you might forgive me. Sleep well, love."

* * *

_**Coming Soon: Part Nine...**_

**Please review! xoxo**


	10. Part Nine

**A/N: Hello :) Many many thanks to my followers, those who have favorited, and those who have taken the time to review! You guys are the best. So this is Part Nine and I'm a bit nervous about it. Not sure why. I hope you all like it! Only the Epilogue left after this...**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or anything related. That all goes to the BBC.**

* * *

The Doctor quickly set the coordinates for where he needed the TARDIS to land. He heard a protesting groan come from his ship right before he started the flight sequence.

"I know it's risky. I know. But, please. You now how much this is eating her up inside. You two are connected now. I know that means you sense stuff from her as well, so please, please just help me," he begged the Old Girl.

The TARDIS flickered her lights dimly. He knew she wanted to help Rose, but was still wary.

"I'm nervous too. But, if we're extra careful I know we can do this. I can sense something unfinished in the timelines. I need to do this or we could have a whole mess of reapers on our hands."

Finally, Her lights brightened and he knew she had given in and agreed. She could sense the unfinished timelines as well and could not deny that it had something to do with them.

Very carefully, the Doctor landed the TARDIS back on the Titanic.

* * *

The first thing Rose noticed as she began to awaken was that her bed felt different. Not bad different, just.. different. And when she rolled over, her pillow smelled as if the Doctor had just been lying there. _The Doctor! _Then it hit her. Everything that had happened the previous evening, washed over her like a tidal wave. Where was the Doctor? Immediately Rose sat up and felt arms surround her from behind.

"Shhh, Rose. I'm here. You're alright. I'm here."

Falling back into the Doctor's embrace, she whispered, "I thought... I thought maybe you'd left."

He felt his insides twist. He could lie to her. Tell her he stayed and held her the entire sleep cycle. But, he needed to be honest with her. How could he ever expect her to tell him the things going on with her if he himself wasn't truthful in return. Besides, he had a surprise for her and as soon as she found out what it was, she would question when he had found the time. "I have a confession, Rose. I did leave you for a short time, but only because I was working on a surprise for you! And I made sure that before I left, you were sleeping peacefully and would for the remain that way for the rest of your sleep cycle," he added.

"O-okay. What's my surprise?"

"If I tell you then it won't be a surprise!" He laughed and pulled a tray up to the bed. "Here, I made you some tea and toast. Eat up."

Rose looked at the spread in front of her. A cup of tea, prepared just the way she liked it, and two pieces of toast slathered in her favorite marmalade. Laying across the tray was a bright pink rose. Rose smiled at his thoughtfulness and leaned over to kiss his cheek. "Thank you, Doctor."

He smiled at the gesture and reciprocated in kind.

* * *

As soon as she was done with her food, Rose decided that she needed to take a shower. Last night's break down in the shower unfortunately made Rose forget about actually washing her hair and body. Rose wrung her hands out nervously and refused to make eye contact with the Doctor as she asked him quietly if he wouldn't mind staying in the en suite while she showered.

The Doctor could tell how uncomfortable she was and wanted to relieve that feeling. He placed a gently finger under her chin and raised her head slowly. "Of course I'll stay, Rose."

* * *

As Rose showered the Doctor sat on the counter, facing away from her, and kept up a steady flow of conversation to reassure her of his presence. To be completely truthful, he was also trying to ignore the fact the Rose was just a few steps away. Without any clothes on. Last night, he had been able to ignore the sight of her nudity, his worries for her, surpassing his attraction. But, now that she was in a stable place, his thoughts began to drift. _Stop it right there, Time Lord! _he thought to himself, willing his mind to think of other, less attractive things.

Later, he watched in complete fascination as Rose plaited her hair and then began to apply her makeup. Of course he thought she was utterly gorgeous with or without all the products, but he knew that it was important to her and made her feel good about herself. She had made that clear to him back when he was in his previous body and chose to lecture her on the silliness of putting so many toxins and chemicals that close to her eyes. Big mistake on his part.

* * *

Rose stood in the control room as the Doctor directed the TARDIS to the location of her surprise, while she nervously fiddled with her jacket. It was the same jacket the TARDIS had given her to wear back when she had said her final goodbye to her mum. It had appeared on her bed this morning and Rose took it as a sign that it was going to be one of those days. One of those days she would need her armor.

She met the Doctor's gaze as she felt the ship land gently for once. She gave a small smile and stroked one of the coral struts. "She's being kind to us today."

He nodded. "I think She might be a bit worried about us and is trying to make things easier." He grabbed Rose hand and led her to the door. "Ready?"

Rose felt her stomach clench at the thought of leaving their ship's protection. "No."

"I promise you, Rose. You're going to be completely safe out there and I'll be with you the entire time."

"No sneaking off and working on anymore surprises?"

He rested his forehead against her's. "Not at all."

"Okay." She took a deep breath. "Allons-y."

* * *

Green. That was the first thing Rose registered as she exited the TARDIS. They had landed in a garden of some sorts, filled with lush greenery. Was this her surprise? "Where are we?" she asked aloud.

The Doctor pulled her close to his side and told her, "We are on the planet Sto."

"Sto? But, isn't that...?"

He nodded solemnly. "For this place it's been about five years since the incident with the Titanic."

Rose felt her heart rate increase. "Why did you bring me here, Doctor?"

Without saying a word, the Doctor followed the path they were on and found themselves near the backdoor of a small two level house. He placed Rose right in front of the door and knocked.

Within seconds a familiar face opened the door and quickly flew into Rose's arms.

"Rose? Oh my vot, it's really you! He told me I would see you again, but I never knew when!"

Rose gasped in shock. "Aleena!? How is this... How is this possible? I thought... I thought everyone..."

"You have your Doctor to thank. He saved us."

Rose pulled out of the girl's embrace and turned to face the Doctor. "You did this? You went back and saved them?"

He shrugged.

"Please," Aleena said. "Come inside and we can sit and talk properly."

* * *

Rose listened with rapt attention as the Doctor explained how he went back to the Titanic, several minutes before the meteors and found Aleena's family. With a flash of his psychic paper he was able to convince them that he was an official for Capricorn Crusieliners and that they needed to head to the closest lifeboat. Immediately.

"He whispered to me that he was your friend and that someday you two would come visit me on Sto," Aleena injected.

"So you all made it?" Rose asked nervously. The image of the girl's mother, Josie, floating through space was still fresh in her mind.

Aleena blinked back her tears and shook her head. "Just me, my brother Avid, and my Aunt Lorsha. My mum had started to follow us, but then panicked when she realised that we had left all of our belongings in our rooms. I tried telling her to just leave it, but she had left my grandmother's brooch behind. It was precious to her and she didn't want to lose it. She promised she would be back within minutes and of course my father followed her. They never came back."

Rose wrapped her arms around her friend. "I'm so sorry, Aleena."

"Hey, it's not your fault."

"What about your uncle?"

She sighed. "The first lifeboat we found was rather tiny. We could all fit, but it was a tight squeeze. Uncle Frads was uncomfortable and insisted that we could find something larger. Despite my aunt's protests, he stepped out of the pod. Within seconds there was an explosion and our lifeboat was detached from the ship.

The Doctor felt guilt rise in his chest. Of course he had contemplated whisking Aleena's entire family away in the TARDIS, but as soon as that thought entered his mind, the timelines began to ripple and sever. "I'm sorry," the Doctor told the young woman. "I wish I could have done more."

"Doctor, if it wasn't for you, my brother and I would be dead. Along with my aunt and cousin."

Rose raised her eyebrows. "Cousin?"

Aleena nodded happily. "My Aunt Lorsha was pregnant. We had no idea till a few weeks after we arrived back here." She took a deep breath. "It was a hard time for us, but that baby, it was like she was this balm that eased our pain." Standing, she reached and pulled a picture off the mantle. She handed it to Rose and pointed at a little girl with dark blonde hair. "That's her."

Rose smiled. "She's beautiful. What's her name?"

"Rose."

* * *

Two hours later the Doctor and Rose were making the short walk back to the TARDIS. "Aleena's brother, Avid, is going to become a famous doctor in his own right you know," the Doctor informed his companion.

"Seriously? Good for him."

"Mmm. And their cousin Rose, who has a fantastic name by the way, is going to become a pioneer for women activists. By the time she's in her fifties she'll be the main reason there will be equal rights for women here on Sto."

"That's amazing!" Rose praised. She was so incredibly proud of the little girl who shared her name. They arrived back at the TARDIS and Rose looked back one final time at Aleena's house. "And what about her?"

"Well, in one year's time she's going to go to a memorial that's being built in honour of those who lost their lives on the Titanic. At that memorial she's going me to meet a very kind man named Malik. See Malik will be there because he lost his brother and sister in law to the tragedy. One year after they meet, they will be pronounced, Mr. and Mrs. Van Hoff."

Rose's eyes grew wide. "Shut up! She's married to Morvin's brother?!"

"Well, not yet." He winked. "But, soon."

Rose leaned forward and kissed him. "Thank you."

* * *

Once they were back inside the TARDIS the Doctor told her to stay by the door. Quickly, he set the ship to dematerialise. After hitting a few more buttons he went back to her and reopened the doors.

They were floating in space, just above a swirling nebula. Without saying a word, they both sat down and let their feet dangle out the doors. Finally, Rose asked, "How did you do it?"

Knowing what she was asking, he explained, "I knew which lifeboat they would end up in because of what Alonso had told us. After that I went and emptied out the boxes stored in there and reset the navigation equipment to send them straight to Sto as soon as the lifeboat had detached. That was why no distress signal went out."

"Why did you do it?" she asked quietly.

"For you. To show you that sometimes, not everybody lives, but sometimes, a few people do. And it might be hard to deal with, but we've got to keep going. You think that running off to the loo because you were panicking is a sign of weakness, but consider this, if you hadn't, you never would have met Aleena and her mother and aunt. Because of that moment, Avid is going to cure dangerous dieses that threaten his entire planet. Aleena's going to bring some joy and happiness to a man who thought he had lost his only family when his brother and sister in law died. And their cousin, Rose, is going to fight for the rights of all the women out there like Astrid. All because of you in that moment."

"But, you saved them," she argued. "Not me."

He wiped a tear from her cheek. "Only because of you."

"But... but Astrid died... And... a-and I... I should have died with her."

The Doctor placed his hands on either side of her cheeks. "Please don't say that, Rose. I need you. I can't lose... I lo-" He stopped himself, unsure of whether he should say those words just yet.

Rose looked at him in surprise, not sure of what was about to come out of his mouth. Deciding to change the subject, she wiped her eyes and faced straight ahead. "Where are we? What galaxy are we in?"

An odd tinkling noise was his answer.

"I'm sorry... What? The TARDIS didn't translate," she said to him.

He shook his head and gave a small laugh. "No, I didn't think she would. This place is... This place is old. Older than the TARDIS."

"Seriously?"

"Yep. It's, um, this is the first place I ever took Her to. After I first left Gallifrey."

"Really?" He nodded and she continued, "That's fantastic."

The Doctor felt his hearts clench. Rassilon, he loved this girl. And it was about time she knew it. "Rose?"

"Yes, Doctor?"

"You remember visiting me in my dreams aboard the Valiant, yeah?" He felt her body stiffen and immediately regretted his choice of words.

"Course I do," she answered. "What about it?"

"Do you remember your final visit?"

Of course she bloody well remembers. How could she forget confessing her feelings and having him wake up right before he could respond. "I... I think so... Why?"

"What did you last say to me?"

She took a sharp intake of breath and felt more tears begin to form. "Doctor, please-"

He smiled and shook his head. "No, that's not what you said. What did you say to me, Rose?"

"I said that I love you," she whispered.

His grin grew broader as he responded, "Quite right too."

"And what about you, Doctor? What did you say to me?"

"I said, 'Rose Tyler."

"Yeah, but then you woke up. How was that sentence going to end?"

He tucked a piece of her hair back and whispered in her ear, "I love you too."

Rose was frozen is shock. Oh, she knew. It had taken her awhile to really believe it, but after everything they had been through together, of course she knew that he loved her. But, to actually hear him say the words aloud and to know that he meant it and was IN love her?... Breaking her freeze, Rose grabbed the lapels of his jacket and kissed him.

* * *

The Doctor watched as Rose stared at him, not moving. Had he said the wrong thing? That was his original response, but was she somehow expecting him to say something different? He felt a wave of relief as a smile bloomed across her face. And then, before he could process another thought, she was snogging him. Properly snogging. The Doctor threw his arms around her and held her tightly. It wasn't like this was their first kiss or anything. They had shared some pretty intense ones, in fact. But, this... This was like nothing they had experienced before. The Doctor knew instantly that there would be no going back from this. Not that he had any intention to! Oh no. He had every intention to make Rose his. In every way. But, he knew there was still a rough road ahead of them and he couldn't rush Rose into more intimacy than she was ready for. Reluctantly, he broke their embrace.

* * *

Rose moaned in protest as the Doctor pulled away from her.

He rested his forehead against her's as they caught their breath. "Shhh. I know, love. I know."

Rose placed her lips against his. "I need you, Doctor."

He groaned. "Rose, it's too-"

"Don't you dare say it's too soon. We've been dancing around this for ages."

"I just don't want to push you into something you think you're ready for now, in the heat of the moment."

She kissed his cheek. "Doctor, I'm not saying that things are going to be easy from now on if we," she blushed and averted her gaze, "make love." She rolled her eyes when the Doctor smirked. "In fact, I know things will be difficult. I'm still going to have nightmares and panic attacks. You're going to worry and be overprotective of me. And then we'll fight, because neither of us wants to hurt the other. But despite all of that, do you know what I'm absolutely sure of? I'm sure of _you_. And I'm positive that I will never regret anything we do together. Including sex."

The Doctor took a deep breath and looked her evenly in the eye. "Are you sure, Rose? One hundred percent? Because if we do this... That will be it, Rose. Time Lords were very possessive by nature. It was one of the many reasons they tried to loom sexual urges out of us. If we're together intimately, there can be no going back. I will not share you, Rose Tyler."

Rose smiled and ran her hand down his right sideburn. "Silly, Doctor. I've been your's since you first grabbed my hand and told me to run."

He growled and captured her lips with his. "No more pretty boys," he told her when they broke apart.

She cocked an eyebrow. "No more french mistresses behind any magic doors."

"Only you," he promised.

"Only you," she agreed before kissing him once more.

After a few minutes of intense snogging, they once again pulled away to regain their breath. The Doctor cleared his throat. "As brilliant as this," he nodded to their view of deep space, "might I suggest we take this elsewhere. Perhaps our bedroom?"

"Yeah, wouldn't do us any good to go tumbling out." She laughed as he helped her stand. A thought suddenly came to her. "Wait a second... Did you say _our _room?"

He nodded. "Oh, yes."

Rose smiled as the Doctor took her hand and began to lead her out of the control room.

* * *

_**Coming Soon: The Epilogue**_

**Please Review! xoxo**


	11. Epilogue

**A/N: Wow! This is it. The Epilogue is finally here! I have to say a GIANT thank you to my amazing and faithful followers, those of you who have been so supportive and favorited this story, and everyone who has taken the time to leave such wondeful reviews. I always love hearing your thoughts. You guys are the best readers this girl could ask for.**

**I should start posting The Old Team's sequel soon, but in the meantime you can go check out my newsest story called In My Life.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or anything related. That all goes to the BBC.**

* * *

When Rose Tyler was a little girl, she had big dreams. She was going to escape the Powell Estate and travel the world. She was going places. She wanted to see everything her planet had to offer. The USA, India, Egypt, Disneyland! Anything and everything. But then, she got older. She thought a certain bloke she dated might be her escape. But all she got out of the relationship was a dump of a bedsit and a load of debt.

So that was it. She had resigned to the fact that she was a simple shop girl who lived on a council estate and that's how it was always going to be. She would date the boy she had known since she was a little girl and eventually end up marrying him. She would probably continue working at the shop until she most likely got pregnant. And even then, she would probably end up having to go back once the baby was old enough. She would sit and watch telly while eating beans on toast. That would be her life.

Until a man grabbed her hand and told her to, "run."

He was no ordinary man. Oh no. He was an alien. A Time Lord to be exact. The last of the Time Lords. He was called the Doctor. And he was terribly lonely and horribly battle scarred. He asked her to travel the stars with him. She wanted to. She wanted to so badly. She could see how this Doctor needed someone. But a heavy sense of guilt weighed heavily on her heart. How could she leave her single mum alone? And what about her boyfriend? So she said, "no." And from the moment she did, she regretted it. He said, "okay," and left.

Something amazing happened though.

He came back.

He came back and told her it travelled in time. Suddenly, all of Rose Tyler's hopes and dreams came rushing back. She could go anywhere and everywhere. Any time. Any place. So she ran. She ran into the TARDIS and never looked back. And they had grand adventures and eventually fell in love. Although, neither admitted it to the other.

The Doctor was an alien. Sometimes Rose forgot that. He would have these human moments and she found herself forgetting that he wasn't born on Earth like she was. The reality of his origins came crashing down on her when he changed his face. Was it really him? She doubted it at first. Where was the man who told her to run? He was older looking with large ears and a predominate nose. He had icy blue eyes and a Northern accent. This new man was skinny as can be, with smaller facial features, but larger hair (brown, not ginger). Where blue eyes once were, now there were chocolaty brown orbs. So new, but still so old. Rose doubted he could be her Doctor. She gave up on him.

That was before he defended the Earth, though. Then there was no doubt in her mind. After that it was all mad adventures with cat nuns and queens. There were a few set backs in the friendship. Never mentioned companions popping up and disappearing for five and a half hours to see the uncrowned queen of France can do that to a pair. But, they bounced back. Better then ever. Then there was a battle. A battle that everybody lost. And Rose had to say goodbye to her mother and now ex boyfriend. Rose didn't regret her decision to stand by her Doctor's side, she would miss her family something terrible though.

Rose soon figured out that she hated endings.

After that they bounced back into their regular unplanned life. Almost immediately actually. They made a new friends and went to new places. They faced down old enemies and learned to rely on strangers to save the day. Until the Doctor discovered that he was no longer the last of his kind. That moment caused Rose and the Doctor to be separated for a very long time. Lots happened during their time apart. Rose found she would be changed forever from that experience. It all worked out though. The prince kissed the princess and the spell was broken. Well... not exactly. It was messy and complicated. There were tears and pain. There still is, truthfully.

From all that, Rose discovered that she could truly spend forever with the Doctor. Not just her forever, but the Doctor's as well. Hopefully. As long as she's not _too _jeopardy friendly. Both were thrilled (and slightly terrified) of this news. Spurred by this new knowledge, they admitted that they loved each other. Oh, they had both known, but it was nice to finally say the words out loud.

Rose liked to image that if her life was being narrated, that now it would say, "And they lived happily ever after."

She might be blonde, but she wasn't dumb. Rose knew that things would never be perfect for them. They would never get married and settle down in a house with curtains and a mortgage. Kids were basically out of the picture, not that Rose had any desire to have any, but the sight of the Doctor surrounded by little ones was always a pleasant little thought that she would imagine for about three seconds before shaking it away. The Doctor wasn't a human man. He was an alien. _But he's my alien,_ she thought as she ran her hand up his bare chest.

"Why are you awake?" the Doctor asked with a sleep addled slur, his eyes still closed.

"Why are you asleep?" she replied back with a smirk he couldn't see.

The Doctor peaked one eye open. "Because you thoroughly exhausted this old Time Lord, you cheeky woman."

Rose leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on his lips and whispered, "You love me for it."

"That I do," he said, giving a lazy smile as she began kissing her way down his chest. "Rose, you need to sleep, love."

Rose grinned against his chest. "Could do that," she replied between kisses. "Yep, I definitely could do that. Or..."

The Doctor's eyes flew wide open as Rose's lips reached their final destination. "Or is good," his voice squeaked. "Yeah, we can definitely do or."

Rose stopped to give a small chuckle before resuming her previous actions. The Doctor may be an alien, but he was still a bloke. And happily ever after or not, she wouldn't have it any other way.

They were the Doctor and Rose Tyler. In the TARDIS. Just as they should be.

* * *

_**Coming Soon: Just As It Should Be (the sequel to The Old Team).**_

**Please review! xoxo**


End file.
